


Pulling On My (Heart)Strings

by soulmate12



Category: Sanders Sides
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, ENJOY THE GAYS, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Major Character Injury, Multi, Polyamory, Red Strings, String of Fate, and everyone deserves a dress, and i suck, and trauma, because i’m super gay, bois in dresses, but anyway, character injury, first fanfic, polyam - Freeform, soulmate
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-29
Updated: 2020-04-05
Packaged: 2020-11-07 20:14:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 31
Words: 30,576
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20823146
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/soulmate12/pseuds/soulmate12
Summary: Patton has had 3 soulmate strings on his right hand for most of his life. They all look different, and they all lead elsewhere. What on earth does Fate have in store for him?Human AU/Soulmate AU/College AUThere IS a happy ending!!!





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> TW: slight polyamorous-phobia (what is that called)
> 
> A/N at the end!

Patton had three strings on his right pinkie. They were all the same shade of light blue, but he could see different colors glittering in each.

The top one had small red threads woven in, popping out every now and then as if to say hi.

The middle one blended with his own, a darker blue shifting into his lighter one.

The lowest one had a deep hued purple, dancing around and around his happy-looking strings.

Patton loved all of them. Whenever he got bored in class, he would stare at them, imagining the people waiting on the other end.

Patton’s best friend, Joan, kept urging him to go find them. “You could finally meet your soulmates!” they said one day in their senior year of high school. “This summer, take some time off and go! Travel the world, y’know?”

Patton glanced down at the blinding orange string attached to Joan’s right hand. “Is that what you’re going to do?”

Joan blushed and shifted in their seat, a big smile spreading from ear to ear. “Yeah. I don’t know how far away they live, but I don’t wanna take the risk. So I’m setting off the first day of summer to go find them. If I do, hopefully we can go to college together. If not, I’ll just come back here and go to the college I planned for originally.”

Patton nodded. “But what if they’re not college aged? Or already in college for something you know nothing about?”

Laughing, Joan said, “Haven’t you heard of the soulmate schools? They’re for people who wanna see their soulmates in school, but are going for completely different degrees. They teach everything!”

The bell rang, and they headed for the parking lot. Patton got into Joan’s car, and they pulled out of the lot.

“Library?” Joan asked, concern creasing their face.

Patton hated that, but he couldn’t handle being home right now. Not after talking about soulmates.

“Yes, please.”

Mrs. Valea looked up and smiled at him as he walked in.

“Hi Patton! How was your final?” Patton sighed quietly before pasting on a smile. “It was fine. I did have to stay a bit longer, but I think I did fine.”

The librarian smiled even wider. “Must be all that studying we did yesterday. Hopefully your mom was fine with you getting home so late.”

Patton gritted his teeth and changed the subject. “Ha, she was fine. Anyway, um, do you have any information on the ‘soulmate colleges’? “

Mrs. Valea typed something into her computer.

“You’ll have to go onto the internet. They’re a fairly new thing, so we don’t have any books on them.”

“Okay. Thanks, Mrs. V!”

Patton slung his grey messenger bag over the back of the chair and sat down.

He logged in to the computer and opened Google. One 0.6 second search later, he was opening links to soulmate college websites.

A few looked pretty good, but they didn’t take last minute applications.

‘Well,’ Patton thought to himself, ‘I might not even find them this summer.’

He wanted to keep searching, but his phone buzzed.

It was a text.

From his mom.

Mom, 4:37: I hope you’re coming home on time tonight. I’m making tacos!!

Patton huffed and fired back that he was on his way home, then picked up his bag, logged off, and left.

The clock read 5:13 when Patton opened the door.

His mom flashed him a big smile from where she was setting the table.

“‘Bout time! Come on, sit down.”

Patton stared silently down at the burrito on his plate. He couldn’t bring himself to ask...but he had to! His soulmates were counting on him!

“Mom?”

Patton’s mom looked so startled that she almost knocked over her glass. “Y-yes?”

“Would it be okay if I went to look for my soulmate this summer?”

Silence fell around the table.

With an awkward laugh, his mom said,

“By yourself? I don’t know if that’s a good idea...”

Patton breathed deep through his nose and said angrily, “Mom. I’m 18, have a drivers license, and I could either rent a car or take ours. I’d be gone for the summer, then I’d come back, stay for a few days, and then leave for college.”

“Patton, when did you become like this? You used to be my happy pappy Patton, remember? What changed?”

Patton pushed his chair back and stood up. “I’m not hungry. Good night.”

Upstairs, he sat down at his desk and pulled out his textbook, intending to study for his English exam tomorrow.

Instead, his eyes caught on the scissors, lying on his desk.

“_Mom! Mom!” Patton ran down the hallway, his newly formed strings trailing behind him. “Look!”_

_ He ran into the kitchen, where his mother stood washing dishes at the sink. _

_Patton held up his hand to his mother, who dried her hands on a towel as she turned. _

_Her face lit up as she saw the strings-then fell as she noticed how many there were. _

_“Patton, sweetie, did you tie these on?” _

_Patton huffed and put his left hand on his hip. “Mom, I’m 15. I wouldn’t do that! Plus, I have two extra soulmates now! Isn’t this great?” _

_Patton’s mom didn’t answer. Instead, she turned and walked into her office with Patton’s hand in tow, forcing him to stumble along after. _

_She grabbed a pair of scissors and opened them, turning back to Patton. _

_“Which one is your favorite?” _

_Patton gasped and yanked his hand out of his mother’s grasp, cradling it close to his chest._

_ “You can’t! I love them all!” _

_She said angrily, “It’s not right to have more than one! You’ll end up heartbroken! I’m trying to save you!” _

_Roughly grabbing his hand back, she pushed the top two strings into the little opening and smashed the scissors shut, a look of heartbreak on her face. _

_But they wouldn’t close all the way. The strings wouldn’t break. _

_Patton pulled away once more, but he couldn’t help looking back at his mother sobbing on the office floor. _

He was pulled from his thoughts by a single tear rolling down his cheek.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Patton is setting off to find his soulmates, but his mother doesn’t think he’s got the right idea.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: no obvious ones, please let me know if i missed any.

Graduation came and went, and Patton packed his bags. Checking a car rental website, he quickly decided against it, as it was very expensive to rent a car for the entire summer.

He reluctantly walked down the hall.

“Mom?” he asked, tapping on her office door.

“Come in.”

He crept in. “May I take the car? Like for the summer? I’ll bring it back when fall comes around.”

Patton’s mom got up from her desk and faced him. “I still don’t think you should go. I don’t think you have what you need to take on the world.”

“You don’t trust me.” His voice was hard.

“No, I don’t. You are a childish, naive, person, who sees the good in everything.”

“Is that a bad thing?”

She sighed exasperatedly. “Yes! I tried to talk last night, but all you did was storm up to your room. Why do you trust the world, but not me?”

Patton stared at her. She didn’t remember. Didn’t even think of the possibility. He had stayed over at Joan’s for days after that, and she didn’t remember?

Dumbfounded, he said, “Never mind about the car. I’ll find another way.”

“No! You can take it. I just... don’t want a wall to grow between us.”

He turned on his way out, and he growled, “It already has.”

Patton hefted his suitcase into the trunk of the car and shut it hard.

Walking around to the front, he slid his strings through the little notch in the door and got onto the warm leather seat.

He turned the key and pulled out of the driveway, a huge smile spreading across his face.

He rolled down the window and turned on the radio, singing loudly to the song, even without knowing the words.

Patton pulled onto the freeway, leaving the town he had always known behind.

Then his phone buzzed, vibrating with an incoming call.

Picking it up, he saw three missed calls, and about twenty texts from his mother.

He put his phone down with a huff and turned the music back up.

As the sky faded to the same shade of red as his top string, Patton found himself pulling into a motel.

He grabbed a bag stuffed with clothes for tomorrow and headed inside.

He walked down the linoleum-tiled hallway to the office. A receptionist took his ID and money, then handed him a room key.

Stepping into the night, he checked the room numbers till he found 110. He unlocked it and flipped on the lights, setting his bag down on the bed.

Flopping down next to it, he turned on his phone and scrolled through the texts from his mom.

Most of them were generic, How are you? Do you need help? You wanna talk yet?, but one made Patton’s eyebrows bunch in confusion and anger.

_You can’t ignore me forever. If you bring all your soulmates here, I will be very upset. You’ll come back to me when your heart gets broken. See you soon. _

In disgust, he turned it off again, but then it buzzed.

With a text.

From...Joan?

_Hey Pat? You free to video chat? _

In a burst of joy, he texted back,

_Yep! one sec. _

Patton clicked the little camera icon near Joan’s name.

Connecting...connecting...

“Hi! What’s up?”

Patton giggled and said, “Hey, Joan! Where are you now?”

Joan smiled big and replied, “I’m in a small town about ten hours from home. How about you?”

Patton sighed, then smiled again. “Found a motel just off the freeway. Found your soulmate yet?”

“Nope!” they said, snickering. “It’s been one day, Patton.”

“I know!” Patton said, mock pouting. “I’m just so excited! I just wanna get going already.”

“Well, maybe you should head to bed, then. You wanna be well rested for your soulmates.”

“Okay. Goodnight Joan!”

“‘Night, Patton.”

The screen went dark, and Patton laid there, the bathroom light reflecting off his eyes.

He closed his eyes, and fell into a silent sleep.

_Patton ran down the deserted road, the bright blue strings following close behind. He chanced a look over his shoulder. _

_Purple strings grabbed his ankles and pulled him down. They dragged him into the open mouth of the tangled ball of yarn. Patton opened his eyes to a world of darkness. _

_In front of him stood three glowing silhouettes. One red, one dark blue, and one purple. They said to him in monotone voices, _

_“I don’t love you.” _

_“I don’t care” _

_“I don’t want to be with you.” _

_Then, simultaneously, they turned and walked into the pitch darkness, leaving Patton behind them, alone. _

He woke up in a cold sweat, and jammed his glasses on, the clock by his bedside reading 3:48.

Patton shook off the last remnants of the dream- no, the nightmare- and got dressed, putting his old clothes in his bag.

The night clerk was sitting at the desk when he went to drop off the key, and Patton managed to talk him into finding a good road map.

He pulled out of the parking lot and back onto the freeway, his strings hanging out the window, showing him the way.

The blue and red string’s exit was the first to come up, so Patton pulled in there and drove down the empty roads.

As the sun rose, he parked on a side street and locked his silver car.

What could be the harm in taking a walk? he thought, strolling along. I might make some friends!

He found an open coffee shop and bought a vanilla chai latte and a donut. The teenager working there looked like they needed some of their own products!

A few hours later, after exploring every shop across three streets, Patton sat down on a park bench.

There were a few children playing on a playground, and Patton sat watching them.

It’s a shame there aren’t adult playgrounds, he thought bittersweetly. I think it might be just a tiny bit weird if I went over and tried to play with them.

His attention was drawn to a tall man sitting on another bench, reading a blue-covered book. He looked about nineteen, and his face was solemn, the square glasses balanced perfectly on his nose.

But what most caught his eye was the deep blue string, leading directly to Patton’s own.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay, so the chapters will be Patton’s PV, Patton’s PV, another character’s PV(can’t tell you who yet)
> 
> This is dedicated to a useless queer, an extravagant bi, my gay therapist, sleepless-in-starbucks, and Triple Kiss anon. 
> 
> please leave a comment. I’m trying to stick to a Sunday uploading schedule.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Logan is not the best with feelings. Especially now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: no obvious ones, please let me know if i missed any!

Logan was always taught that love was a myth. That any feelings humans received were simply primal intuition for the end goal of reproduction.

He had no idea how wrong he was.

Working at the planetarium was the best job Logan had ever had. The kids he showed around on school field trip were fun to hang around, especially the ones that knew what they were talking about.

When he was younger, nobody ever liked it when he told everyone what he knew...

He shook off the memories. Those kids didn’t matter anymore.

He was going to go on and get into an advanced college, and become an astrophysicist, while those people would end up homeless on the street.

At least, that’s what his parents said.

When his lunch break came about, Logan hesitated to go home. The manager came around though, and gently ushered him out of the break room.

Logan uncharacteristically fumbled with the keys while attempting to open his front door.

He finally slid the key into the lock and turned it. Sitting down to eat lunch, he began reviewing his college applications, hoping he submitted them right.

Half an hour later, his dad came home. He walked stiffly into the kitchen and sat down across from Logan.

“Your mother will be home shortly.” he said in a monotone voice. “Please close your computer and wait.”

So they waited.

And waited.

And waited.

When Logan’s lunch break had fifteen minutes left and he felt he should really get moving as to be punctual, he heard a car door slam and heels clack up to the house.

Logan’s mother opened the door and stalked haughtily into the house, pulling out a chair and sitting primly, stick-straight.

She opened her mouth. “Darling, your father and I want to talk to you about what you have been choosing for college. We told you back in tenth grade to submit your college applications, and you’re doing it now? Pathetic.”

Logan almost flinched, but he reopened his laptop and turned it around to show his parents. “I’ve applied to five more colleges this week, Mother. And it isn’t my fault. All the colleges I’ve applied to reject me.”

His mother sniffed. “Well, you must not be smart enough, then.”

Logan was stung. He picked up his messenger bag and slung it over his shoulder, trying to hide the tears in his eyes.

He hated emotions.

He stormed out of the house, fuming and thinking hard.

He had been valedictorian of his graduating class.

Awarded a scholarship no school would accept.

Been pushed harder and harder to win everything, but had ended up with nothing.

What was wrong with him?

The staff door for the planetarium was locked, so Logan used the main entrance.

He set his bag down in the break room and straightened his tie.

Then Terrence, one of his coworkers, rushed in. “Logan, if I take your shift now, d’you think you’ll be able to cover for me tomorrow? My parents invited me out to celebrate graduation, but I completely forgot!”

Logan smiled. “Of course, Terrence. Go ahead. The camp is meeting by the Saturn statue out front.”

“Thanks!” and he rushed off.

Logan sighed and picked up his bag again. No reason for him to stay.

The park was relatively peaceful at this time of day, so Logan grabbed a book out of his bag and headed there. He sat down on a shady bench by some playground equipment.

But his peace was interrupted by a short, stocky, teenager, about his own age, with dirty-blond curly hair, a smattering of freckles across his nose, and round glasses perched on his face.

“Hi,” he said, holding out a hand. “I’m Patton Moratile.” Logan’s eyes caught on the strings trailing down from Patton’s hand. “And I think we might be soulmates.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WOOO! i know i said that i was only gonna post on sundays, but i figured why not? so now my schedule is: every sunday, but if i have a chapter, i’ll post it. 
> 
> Dedicated to sleepless-in-starbucks, Triple Kiss anon, a useless queer, and an extravagant bi.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Getting to know the soulmate he found in the park, Patton realizes that not everything may go as he planned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: no obvious ones. Please let me know if i missed any!

Patton was getting a bit nervous. The man in the tie wasn’t responding. He was just staring, taking in Patton’s appearance.

Finally, he stood and took Patton’s outstretched hand. “Hello. I’m Logan Logiciel. Pleasure.”

Patton couldn’t help but notice the beautiful shade of blue as their strings touched. “Uh, are you free right now?” he asked, hating how high his voice went. “Because I’d like to get to know you a bit, if you want.”

Logan checked his watch. “I have an adequate amount of time. What are your plans?”

Patton blushed and said, “Well, we could take a tour of some shops around here. Oh, no, wait, dumb idea, you’ve probably been in all of them, you live here, and I’m babbling-“ He shut his mouth fast.

Logan cracked the tiniest of smiles and replied, “Actually, I have only been in a total of three shops in this town.”

“What? Don’t you live here?”

“Yes. I have lived here all of my life. However, I do not ‘get around’ much.”

Patton smiled big, and he felt his anxiousness melt away. “I have a lot of things to show you.”

They traveled around the entire town that afternoon. Patton showed Logan the coffee shop he had gone to that morning, a cute out-of-the-way jewelry store, and his personal favorite, a gigantic weeping willow on the banks of a reservoir.

“Isn’t it gorgeous? That lady really knew what she was talking about.” Patton said, running his hand over the names carved into the tree bark. “I just wish I could sit up here in this tree forever, and listen to all these people come back and tell their stories.”

“It is fascinating.” agreed Logan, walking around the wide trunk.

Patton looked around. The leaves his everybody else from view, so it was like they were in their own little world.

Green light filtered through the branches, casting a mystical shadow across the two of them.

Patton slid down off of his branch, landing next to Logan. Shoulder to shoulder like this, Patton couldn’t help but notice how tall Logan was. He was easily 6’4, while Patton was about 5’8.

Yet their hands fell perfectly at the same height. Patton was about to reach for Logan’s, but then Logan’s phone buzzed. “My family would like me back for dinner.” he said aloud.

Patton sighed, then pasted on a big smile. “Well then, I guess I better ‘leave’ you!” he said, pushing aside the hanging leaves.

“Wait.”

Patton turned. “I would like you to join you to find the rest of your-our- soulmates. My parents may not like it, but it’s not like I have existing school plans anyway. Why don’t you come meet them?”

Patton’s smile became genuine. “I’d love to!” he said, fishing his car keys out of his pocket. “Where’re they meeting us?”

Logan unlocked the door and gestured for Patton to go inside. He announced loudly, “Mother, Father. I have brought a guest.”

Logan’s parents exited the dining room and stood side by side in the hallway in front of him.

Patton bounded up to Logan’s parents. “Hi, I’m Patton Moratile!” He thrust out his hand for the two Logiciels to shake, and Logan’s mother took it gingerly, as if she was afraid of catching some terrible disease.

“It’s a...pleasure.” She turned to Logan. “May I speak with you a moment, please?”

She took Logan and guided him into the living room, leaving Patton and Mr. Logiciel standing together in the hallway.

Mr. Logiciel pulled out his cell phone while Patton stood there awkwardly. Overhearing voices from the other room, Patton listened to Logan’s mother say, “Logan. This man is not good for you. What have we always said? No romantic pursuits. It distracts you. Your dream will never become a reality if you get involved with him!”

Patton was crushed. He had been so excited to find Logan, but all he was doing was holding the other man back. Well, if Logan had a dream to pursue, Patton wouldn’t be the one keeping him from it. His eyes started to tear up as he turned to leave.

Then he heard Logan’s voice. “Patton Moratile is the nicest person I have ever met. He has shown me more about this town in his few hours of visiting then I have known after my life spent living here. Patton is an amazing human being, and _you_ are the one who isn’t good for me. I have wasted my life chasing a dream that you failed to achieve! Maybe you are the ones who aren’t smart enough!”

Logan stormed out, his face flushed red. He grabbed Patton’s arm and looked back at his mother, still standing silently in the living room.

“Now, if you’ll excuse me, I am going to pack my bags and leave. Goodbye.”

He pulled Patton up the stairs and into an immaculate bedroom. The minute Patton closed the door, Logan wrapped his arms around Patton.

“Thank you so much,” Patton murmured. “You were my knight in shining armor out there.”

Logan disentangled himself from Patton. “Well, you’re going to need another one, because I never wish to do that again.”

Patton laughed and helped Logan pack for their trip. In the end, two backpacks and a messenger bag were filled with stuff and placed by the door.

Then Logan just stood there, typing furiously on his phone.

When he looked up again, Patton asked, “Whatcha doing?”

Logan clicked the phone off and put it into his back pocket. “I transferred all of my savings from the account my parents have access to into my own. Now I have sufficient funds for any activities we do during this trip.”

They hefted Logan’s bags and carried them downstairs. Mr. and Mrs. Logiciel were nowhere in sight.

Putting the bag he was holding into the trunk of his car, he looked over and saw how Logan was looking up at the stars, reveling in the night.

Logan Logiciel.

A French surname.

Logi. Ciel.

Logic. Sky.

Patton thought that was a pretty nice combo.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In French, logiciel means software. But its roots (logi-ciel) mean logic and sky, so i just had to put it in.   
anyway,   
Dedications: sleepless-in-starbucks, Triple Kiss anon, an extravagant bi, Da_Useless_Queer, a gay therapist, a gay ginger, and that one hamilton nerd.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Free from Logan's parents, they head out hunting for their third soulmate, who apparently lives in the same town as Logan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: no obvious ones, let me know if I missed any!

Patton locked his car and turned away, his eyes locked on the red-tinted strings leading from both his and Logan's hands.

It had been a good day. Patton had spent the day at the planetarium, listening to Logan tell a summer camp about space. His voice had been comforting, but it was also filled with wonder as he spoke about what could lay beyond the stars.

Patton loved every second of it.

That is until one of the kids pointed back at him and said, "Mister Logan, why is there a man following us?" Patton blushed, but Logan said, "Oh, that is simply Patton. He has never been here before and is a very close friend of mine. therefore, he is here to listen and learn, as are you." This quieted the little 'astronauts' and Patton returned to looking at a model of the Jupiter storm, a big smile spread across his face.

Logan jolted Patton out of his thoughts, asking him a question Patton didn't quite catch.

"What was that?"

Logan turned his head slightly towards Patton and repeated, "What are your plans? For after the summer, as I certainly do not want to return to my parents."

Patton understood. He didn't want to go back to his mom either."Well, I thought we could go to college together. All of us, y'know. To one of those soulmate colleges?"

As they stood there waiting for the crosswalk to open, Logan stood thinking.

"I suppose that would be desirable, provided I can make it in," he finally said as they walked across the white stripes.

Startled, Patton replied, "Why wouldn't you? You're like, the smartest person I know!"

Logan smiled, but it didn't seem to reach his eyes. "That's kind of you, Patton, but I have applied to over twenty colleges in these last two years. All of them have rejected me."

Leading Logan over to a bench, Patton cocked his head and asked, "Can I see the rejection letters?"

Logan looked uneasy, but he unzipped his navy backpack and pulled out a neat manila envelope, keeping his eyes focused downward.

Patton scanned the top one, a small smile forming on his face. He flipped through every single paper, the smile growing into a grin. Finally, he flipped back to the first one and gave it back to Logan. "Look right here," he said, tapping the page happily.

Logan peered closer at the text near Patton's finger.

OVERQUALIFIED.

On every paper, in the same spot, was the same word, an alert to his wits and brainpower. Logan sat on the bench, stunned, until Patton stood up and brushed off his jeans, saying, "We probably should keep looking!" 

He held out a hand to Logan, who took it, pulling himself to standing. They didn't let go of their tightly clasped hands and as they continued down the street, Patton whispered in Logan's ear. 

"I knew you were smart."

As the sunset rolled around once more, they found their strings leading into a high school, with a sign outside, reading Senior Play, Goodbye Students.

"Oooh, a play!" Patton said excitedly, pulling Logan into line for tickets.

Logan looked up at the school quizzically. "I wonder why this school hasn't let out yet. Possibly because it's a public school, but my school let out a week ago. What about you?"

"It's been about three days. Maybe they have let out and this is just the last hurrah before summer!"

"Perhaps."

The play seemed to be a typical fairy-tale, castles and dragons, princes and princesses, but Patton was eager to see it anyway. It would be his first real date! And with Logan, who was pretty much the cutest nerd to ever nerd.

Patton paid for their tickets(he did drag Logan into line, after all) and they walked into the school's auditorium. It was one of the best he had ever seen. The seats were a plush red, and there were little mahogany accents everywhere.

They found their two seats right in the middle of the auditorium and placed their bags down.

As people shuffled to their seats, Patton looked at the program.

Princess Blossom.....Leah Hantelle

Fiddler/Narrator.....Dion Flinson

Prince Jacob.....Roman Prity

Animals.....Thea Chanal, Adam Courane, Natalia Santeo

Village People.....Colleen Hollis, Darien Seymour, Harriet Asterton, Hal Witt

The rest of the names were the names of lighting and crew, and though Patton scanned through those too, he didn't see anything that rang a bell either.

But he gave up his task and shut the program, deciding that if their soulmate was here, they were in the crowd somewhere.

Overhead lights darkened and a spotlight started to glow. Patton settled back in his seat, hoping that he would see their soulmate in the crowd somewhere.

A fiddler sang and danced his way across the stage, with the princess singing about her prince in the tower behind him.

When the prince excited the wings, he sang about how he wished he could find his soulmate, how few could be a great royal match for him.

He raised his right hand into the sky, a testament to his love and adoration for the princess-but he saw it at the same time Logan and Patton did. Two rose-colored strings, fading into blue, pointed the way to the viewers below him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry for this chapter. It's probably my least favorite. it's short and there isn't much going on. I am really really upset with this and might rewrite it later honestly just let me get to the ANGST already
> 
> Dedications: sleepless-in-starbucks, Triple Kiss anon, Da_useless_queer, and a gay therapist.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Who is the golden prince standing on the stage? Well, it turns out, he is very gay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: Remus mention, no appearance. let me know if i missed any!

Roman tapped his foot impatiently outside the high school.

Hopefully he didn’t miss them! It wasn’t every day you got the chance to talk to your soulmates!

Well, not all of them. The string with the purple threads lead off in a completely different direction than the other two.

Speaking of the other two...

A short, stocky, curly haired man with freckles dotting the area under his round glasses and a very tall dark-haired man whose glasses reflected the lights before him came walking out, chatting excitedly with each other.

They turned to face forward, then stopped short as they spotted Roman.

The shorter one sped up to him, saying happily, “Hello, I’m Patton Moratile, and this is Logan Logiciel.”

“Hi, I’m Roman Prity.”

Patton blushed a bit, but said, “Your name is correct, then, because you are very pretty.”

Roman flushed red and thanked him.

Then a thought struck him.

“Which one of you lives here, in this town?”

Logan stepped forward, adjusting his glasses. “That would be me.”

Roman looked into his deep brown eyes, ready to challenge him. _Why have you ignored me? Why wouldn’t you come find me? Where were you?_

But instead, he burst into tears and wrapped his arms around Logan. Logan flinched, probably startled by the display, but awkwardly patted Roman’s head all the same.

Patton asked, “What’s wrong, Roman? Are you okay?”

Sniffling, Roman pulled away. “Y-yeah. I just...didn’t think you cared.”

He looked up into Logan’s face.

“When I was fifteen, I went looking for my soulmates-you. I couldn’t leave the town, so imagine my excitement when I found out you lived near me! That day, I followed my string to your house, and knocked on the door. A woman answered. When I told her why I was there, she laughed. She told me that you didn’t want to see me, and that I wasn’t welcome back. Then she slammed the door in my face.”

Logan smiled down at him, but his eyes were pained. “I can assure you, that was a falsehood. I would have wanted to see you, even if we did not get romantically involved. A friend would have been nice.”

Logan gritted his teeth.

“My mother, she is not a good person. Patton was the one who helped me realize that.”

Roman smiled, and wiped his tears away.

“Do you guys have plans for dinner tonight?”

Patton shook his head.

“Well then, you should come back to my house, I’m sure my family will be excited to meet you.”

Roman opened the door wide for his two soulmates, as his seven-year-old sister Katie came running up to them.

“Roman!” She stopped short. “Who’re you?”

Roman said, “Katie, these are my two soulmates, P-“

A woman poked her head out of the kitchen. “Did I hear right? Did Roman finally find his soulmates?”

Roman blushed, but stepped aside as his mother made her way over.

Logan stuck out his hand and said, “Hello, I’m Logan Logiciel, and this is Patton Moratile.”

Roman’s mother shook his hand, saying, “You can call me Rosie Mae.”

With her free hand, she grabbed Roman’s right and held it up, comparing the boys to their strings.

Then she saw Patton. He was trying to stay as silent as possible, almost hiding behind Logan.

She softly whispered, “What’s wrong?”

Patton seemed almost scared. He said quietly, “So you don’t think soulmates are a waste of time?”

“No.”

“And you don’t think certain soulmates are wrong?”

She laughed gently, a tinkle like a little bell. “Darling, you should meet my wife!”

Half an hour later, Christine Prity came home. Dressed in a navy blue pantsuit, her heels clacking across the floor, Roman felt Logan stiffen beside him on the couch.

His mother walked up to Logan and offered her hand.

“I’m Christine, Roman’s other mother.” She cracked a smile. “I take it by your strings that you are one of my sons soulmates?”

Logan stood, and Roman could see his shoulders relax.

While they were introducing themselves, Katie came charging out of the playroom.

“Mommy!”

She slammed face first into Christine’s chest, knocking her backwards onto the couch.

Patton, who had been playing in the playroom with her for the past half an hour, came walking out as well.

Roman’s mother shoved Katie off her, the little girl giggling loudly. “Katie, we have guests. Plus, it’s dinner time. Go get your brother.”

Katie sped upstairs, calling, “It’s time for dinner! A door slam and a thousand stair creaks later, she was back, sprinting into the kitchen to help set the table.

Five minutes later, Roman’s eleven-year-old brother, Jack, descended the stairs softly, letting out a quiet squeak when he saw the two strangers seated downstairs.

He mumbled a hello and quickly walked into the kitchen. A few minutes later, his mother called over the clinking of dishes. “Dinner!”

Roman held the door open for his soulmates, then stepped through himself, the delicious smell of tacos wafting into his nose.

They all sat down and began filling their plates.

When everyone was happily eating, Rosie Mae turned to Patton. “What do you intend to do for the rest of the summer?”

Patton swallowed. “Well, first we were gonna find our last soulmate. Logan and I wanted to go to college together, but if Roman already has plans, we don’t want to interfere.”

Roman snickered as Christine smacked him lightly on the shoulder. “This idiot doesn’t think he’s right for college.” she said. “He wants to be-“

“An actor!” Roman finished excitedly.

Logan spoke up. “If I am not mistaken, there is a theater major you could try to get a degree in.”

“Ooh, that sounds cool!” He threw his arms up to the sky. “I’m going to college!”

As they were clearing their dishes away, Roman heard Logan approach his mother. “Hey, Logan,” Christine said behind him. “What’s up?”

“I was wondering...does Roman have a twin?”

There was a startled gasp, and then, “How did you know?” She laughed. “Yes, Roman has a twin named Remus. However, he’s at wrestling camp right now.”

She peered up at the nerd.

Logan took a breath and said, “There are school pictures up on the wall, but it looked like Roman has two. Also, there are backpack hooks over there, by the door. Four of them.”

Patton chimed in from where he was wiping down the table. “Plus, you only had to pull over one chair for me, so someone else is normally here!”

Roman turned around, drying his hands on a dish towel.

“You two are just like Sherlock and Watson, aren’t you?”

He set the towel down. _These two are amazing!_

“Wanna see my room?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i had to end it there bc otherwise, i would have gone on forever with lesbian fluff. don’t worry, this isn’t the last you’ll see of these amazing parents. they’ll be very helpful when tragedy strikes. ;)  
Dedicated to Triple Kiss, Sleepless-in-starbucks, gay therapist(heyo), Da_Useless_Queer, gay ginger, et that one hamilton nerd.


	7. Chapter 6 & 1/2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little ficlet for Halloween!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: Remus appearance, but he’s eight.

Roman and Remus charged out of the house side-by-side, yelling incoherently. The eight-year-old twins jumped around, buzzing with energy.

“Mama! Mama! Take a picture quick! I want candy!” Remus yelled, his octopus tentacles flapping around.

“Me too!” a squealing Roman shouted over him.

Rosie Mae laughed and said, “Okay, get together.”

The camera light flashed, illuminating the two boys with their arms around each other, smiling wide.

Roman grabbed Remus and took off down the street, swinging his pirate sword wildly and almost knocking Remus in the face.

“Roman! Stop!” their mother cried. “Oh boy…”

She gave Christine a little peck on the cheek. “Well, I better go get our little monkeys. I love you.”

Christine waved goodbye and closed the door.

“But, Mother? Why can’t I go out?” I want to go trick-or-treating!”

Logan’s mother shook her head. “That is a waste of time, and candy is unhealthy. You would be better off studying.”

Logan nodded his head subserviently, and quietly ascended the stairs to his room. Curled up on his bed, he tried not to let his tears fall. Feelings are for the weak, he told himself. Don’t cry, or you’ll never be good enough.

Half an hour later, as Logan peered down at his notes, his dad cracked the door open and peered inside.

“Listen, Logan,” he said gently. “I used to love Halloween. Still do, in fact.” He fiddled with something behind his back – a plastic bag, by the sound of it. “May I come in?”

Logan nodded, and his dad entered, setting a grocery bag down on his bed.

“Go ahead, look inside!”

Gingerly, Logan lifted out a unicorn onesie, as well as a stack of different candies.

“I thought we could have our own little party!”

Logan hugged the onesie to his chest, and they spent the rest of the night watching spooky movies on Logan’s dad’s phone, Logan cuddled up in his new onesie, as Logan’s mother answered the door downstairs for trick-or-treaters, including two boys, dressed as a pirate and an octopus.

Virgil looked up at his 15-year-old sister as she was adjusting his halo. “Ella, what if nobody likes my costume?”

“They will, Virgil, don’t worry.”

“What if I drop all my candy in a lake?”

“We don’t live near any lakes, Virgil.”

“What if-“

“Virgil, it’s okay to be scared. I was scared too. But Mommy helped me through it, and now I can help you.”

Virgil nodded, and he took Ella’s hand to maneuver his way out the door, careful not to bump his angel wings.

They decided to go up to their neighbor Samantha’s house first, since Virgil knew her pretty well.

He rang the doorbell, and a tall woman with very large shoulders opened it, holding an orange and black bowl containing lots of Halloween candy.

“Awwww! Virgil, you look so cute! Here, have some candy!”

Virgil whispered, “Thank you.”

As Ella led him away from the house, she asked him, “So do you want to continue?”

The angel nodded, and they proceeded onwards.

“What time did I say you have to be home, Patton?”

The curly haired boy said, “9:00! Love you, Mom!”

The door shut, and Patton cheerfully bounced away from the door, his Stitch ears flapping wildly at the sides of his head.

His friend Valerie, dressed as Lilo, ran down the walkway close behind him. “Patton! Let’s go!”

They flew down the street, getting candy from every house. As the clock ticked closer to 9:00, their bags got heavier and heavier.

Then three older kids stepped in front of him.

“We want your candy.”

Patton was so startled, he dropped his bag. Swiftly, one of the kids hooked it with his foot and slid it towards them.

“There’s one. How about you just hand over your bag and make this easier?” they said to Valerie, who was still clutching her candy beside him.

In response, her foot shot out and planted itself in his stomach.

The kid doubled over and groaned, dropping Patton’s candy.

Patton snatched it back, and the other two helped their friend to his feet and led him away.

“Nice!” Patton told her as they ran back to Patton’s house. 

“Thanks!” she said. “I knew those martial arts lessons would come in handy.”

That night, a pirate, a unicorn, an angel, and an alien each had their own adventures. They had no idea what would happen to them when they finally met.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i wrote this in one day! also, hi to the artsy mom friend, a new reader and one of my best friends!


	8. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Patton is set and ready to find their last soulmate, but there are a few...complications.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: Remus's room (he shares it with Roman, it's very normal)

Roman kicked the door open ahead of them, and let them in.

A room with walls painted gray, was just past the entranceway. They were two beds, one with red sheets, and one green. On the green bed lay one very well loved octopus.

On the red bed lay…

Oh my…

On the bed lay a lot of stuff animals. They were lions and griffins, as well as dragons and quite a few stuffed animals even Patton couldn't name.

Dramatically, Roman flopped onto the red bed, knocking about 15 plushies to the floor. Patton stooped and picked up a very worn bear in a fairy costume.

"Who is this, Roman?"

Roman picked his head up, and looked at the bear, smiling. "That's Mr. Cuddles. I've had him since I was nine."

"I love the dress!"

"Isn't it fabulous?!?"

Logan bent down and picked up a small doll that looked strangely like Roman himself. "Is this a voodoo doll?"

Roman took the doll from Logan's hands and held it up above him as he lay back down on the bed.

"I found this on top of my costume one day during rehearsal. I assumed it was a declaration of undying love by one of the costume crew, but when I asked them about it, all I found out was that the costume crew, made up of all girls I might add, was gay. The makeup crew was not happy about having to cover up the hand shaped mark on my face."

Roman stretched, sending even more stuffed animals to the floor. Logan sighed and grabbed a handful, placing them down on the bed neatly.

Roman got up and, to Logan's frustration, knocked the rest of the plushies off the bed. Logan gently put the stuffed animals all in straight lines, while Roman grabbed a handful and chucked them with wild abandon onto the comforter.

Patton tried to keep a straight face, but inside he was a gleefully squealing. He was so _lucky_ to have these two! And once he found their last soulmate, he couldn't even imagine how much he'd enjoy life!

"When do you guys think that we should get moving? I want to spend as much time with our last soulmate as possible, especially if they're not coming to college with us."

Logan placed his last plushie down on the bed and turned to face Patton. "Regrettably, we can't leave the town for a while. I have to train my replacement at the planetarium, and while I do not want to stay in the same town as my parents, I must stay in the name of professionalism."

Roman gasped, and bolted from the room with a call of "Be right back!"

Patton looked over at Logan, who was staring quizzically at the door. "What do you think of him?"

Logan looked around the room thoughtfully before answering. "I think that he is a good person. He may not always make the right choice, but his heart is in the right place." He smirked a little bit, and added, "Of course, who am I to talk about hearts?"

They heard Roman charging back up the stairs towards them, and he burst into the room saying, "My moms said that you could stay for as long as you need."

Patton smiled, but said sadly, "That's very nice of you, but we don't want to impose. We have no problem with staying in a hotel, and we don't want to stay here and trespass upon your hospitality without doing anything to earn it."

Roman tilted his head cockily, and replied, "Who said that you wouldn't be earning it? I hope you know how to babysit."

Two days later, Patton and Katie sat in her room, reading a book. Rosie Mae and Christine were out on a date, Logan was due to come home from work anytime now, and Roman was finishing up a college letter draft with his friend Talyn.

That just left Patton and Katie alone in the house. Well, and Jack.

Patton hadn't seen much of Jack over the last few days. He normally shut himself in his room, and neither Logan nor Patton knew what he did in there. But before they had left for their date that night, Rosie Mae pulled Patton aside and and whispered to him, "I would love it if you tried to talk to Jack tonight. I know he's shy and quiet, but I feel like you and Logan would really get along with him." Patton promised he would try, and so, as soon as he put Katie to bed, he found himself standing outside Jack's door, preparing to knock.

A small voice came after he knocked, "Come in."

He opened the door into a room covered in chemistry posters, from the periodic table, to the make up of different elements. Jack didn't seem to realize who had come in at first. He sat at his desk, fiddling with a few glass bottles. An unplugged Bunsen burner sat on the table next to him.

When he looked up, Jack started, apparently shocked that Patton was in his room.

"Hey Jack, can I sit down?"

Jack nodded silently, and Patton sat at the end of his bed, still looking around. This boy must've been obsessed with chemistry. It was all over his walls and his ceiling, and his desk was covered in chemicals.

Patton said with a laugh, "I hope none of those are dangerous! I would hate for you to get hurt."

Jack muttered quietly, "They're not dangerous, and I know how to work with them."

Patton quickly said, "Oh, well, that's good."

They sat in awkward silence for a few more minutes, before Patton heard the door open.

Logan came up the stairs quietly and Patton waved at him through the open doorway.

Logan came in, looking around. "I take it you are a big chemistry fan, Jack?"

Jack nodded, and Logan began talking about his experiences in chemistry class in tenth grade. This was the first time that Patton had seen Jack actually interested and listening to what Logan had to say.

He smiled, and got up from the bed quietly, giving Logan a small, loving, bump with his shoulder. He doubted Jack would even notice that he had gone.

He made his way downstairs, intending to clean up the dinner dishes that he and Katie had used beforehand.

As he was scrubbing away at the plates, Roman threw open the door, yelling, "Guess who finished their college letter draft?"

Patton smiled, but made a _be quiet_ gesture, as Katie was sleeping.

Roman came closer, and said quietly, "Would you guys be up for leaving tomorrow?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This entire thing was filler, but soon they'll get to go find the last soulmate, i promise
> 
> Dedications: Da_Useless_Queer, sleepless-in-starbucks, Triple Kiss, an extravagant bi, the artsy mom friend, and my gay therapist


	9. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What could happen on a road trip? Who knows, to be honest?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: sharing a bed

With difficulty, Roman pushed the top of his suitcase shut onto his overflowing array of stuffed animals and clothes.

Logan looked up from working at Roman's desk. "Maybe you could fit everything in there if you left some of the plushies behind?"

An appalled gasp was heard from the other man.

Patton snickered.

"I can't leave them behind!?? Who will snuggle with them? Who will play with them?"

"Katie."

Patton spoke up. "Logan's right, Roman. Katie can take care of them, she'll have a lot of fun. You don't have to leave all of them, but you can make your little sister happy."

Roman grunted but opened the suitcase to display the stuffed animals.

He led her into the room a few minutes later, saying, "...decided that I can't take all of them, so you can have some!"

Katie's grin was from ear-to-ear as she picked up quite a few stuffed animals leaving Roman only five or six, then hurried out of the room, returning a minute later to give Roman a big hug.

"Thank you! I have so many games to play with them! Like..."

As she chattered on to Roman, Patton refolded the clothes that had gotten messed up with everything else that had been shoved in there. He then put the stuffed animals on top and zipped up the suitcase.

"-and I could do a story with the prince trapped in the tower and the princess has to rescue him!"

Roman pried Katie's arms from around his middle and turned to pack up. When he saw what Patton had done, he flashed a grateful smile and picked Katie up.

Grabbing his suitcase and pulling it off the bed, he trudged downstairs.

Logan followed.

Patton took one last look at the room before he walked out.

Roman's bed was neatly made, and there was a small lion plushie sitting on the pillow, alone.

Patton flicked the lights off and closed the door.

Rosie Mae planted a big kiss on Roman's cheek. Christine hugged him, and said, "Love you! Make sure you call every Sunday. If you don't, I'm calling the police, and I will come get you!"

Roman laughed but straightened up. "I will! Love you too!

As Patton and Logan were dragged into a hug by Rosie Mae too, Roman loaded his suitcase into the trunk and got into the passenger seat. Logan opened the driver's door, and started the car, leaving Patton to sit in the back.

He didn't mind though.

He was happy just being with them.

Roman rolled the window down to wave, smiling brightly at his parents.

As she was waving, Rosie Mae called, "Don't come back until I have grandchildren!"

Everyone in the car blushed, and Roman closed the window with a hasty "Bye!"

The three strings were splayed out in front of the car, leading off into the horizon.

Patton laid his head against the window, staring out at the passing cars.

Allowing himself a little fantasy, he closed his eyes and tried to imagine what their last soulmate would look like.

Maybe they would have red hair? Or... Patton sniffed in frustration.

The truth was that he would be fine with any soulmate. No matter what, Patton would love whoever was at the other end of their strings.

Every two hours, the boys switched places. Patton moved up into the driver's seat, while Logan shifted to the right, Roman stretched out in the back.

After another two hours, Roman came up to drive and Patton went into the front passenger, leaving a very tall and uncomfortable Logan sitting in the back.

Four more rotations later, when Patton was getting ready to fall asleep under the night sky out the car's window, Logan pulled into a city, parking the car on the side of a road near a hotel.

They grabbed a change of clothes and some toiletries from their suitcases and sleepily purchased a room.

There were only two beds, however.

Patton woke up a little as his brain scanned through the problem.

Well, there was a couch, so Patton could sleep there. He was the shortest, after all.

"I'll take the couch," he said. The others were too tired to argue.

The room was cold, so Patton snuggled up in the blanket from the top of the closet and closed his eyes.

He tossed and turned all night, shivering under the blanket.

Sometime in the middle of the night, he was picked up from the couch and put somewhere much softer. He cuddled up to the warmth that seemed to be all around him and fell asleep.

He woke the next morning to soft snores from both sides of him. He turned to his left and saw Logan, eyes closed, a slight smile on his face.

Patton jumped a bit and scooched backward, bumping into another source of warmth, which, when he spun his head around, turned out to be Roman, who stirred and rubbed his eyes a bit before sleepily looking up.

"Mornin' Patt-" He yawned. "I got cold last night, so I guess I crawled into Logan's bed. You looked chilly last night too, so Lo brought you into the bed as well. I hope you don't mind."

Patton shook his head but flushed even redder as he heard Logan rustle behind him. "Someone say m' name?"

Patton said, "N-no. Thanks for keeping me warm last night. I appreciate it."

He got up fast and fled to the bathroom, hoping to hide the blush covering his face.

In the other room, Patton could hear Logan and Roman getting ready and moving about in the big room. He got dressed, cleaned himself up, and got ready to find their last soulmate.

Half an hour later, they were still waiting for Roman to finish.

"Roman! C'mon!" Patton called.

"I am doing my eyeliner!" Roman yelled back. "Do you want me to poke myself in the eye?"

They waited for fifteen more minutes, then Roman, makeup perfectly done, sauntered out of the bathroom. They handed in their key, and Logan led the way out the door to the daylight-dazzled street.

"Welcome," he announced, "to the supposed city of our soulmate.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay, useless queer, if you make an inappropriate joke i will hit you with one of those fold-up metal chairs
> 
> Dedications: sleepless-in-starbucks, Triple Kiss anon, Da-Useless-Queer, artsy mom friend, extravagant bi, gay ginger, that one hamilton nerd, and astraheart04.


	10. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Remember those complications?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: abuse

Virgil’s three strings had finally lined up. 

Straight in a row, these looked so even that it seemed like he could strum a tune if he pulled a guitar pick across them. 

They all pointed him to the same spot, telling Virgil that wherever his soulmates were, they were together. 

So he waited. 

And waited. 

Two days went by, and there was no sign of them. 

“They’re far away,” he told himself. “They just need a little more time.” 

So he waited more. Another day passed, but no one came. 

And there wouldn’t be any of his leaving the city. Ella needed him. So he would stay. 

No matter how he stared longingly into the distance, or fiddled with his strings absently, he would wait. 

No matter how he listened hard for a doorbell buzz, or scrutinized the right hand of every customer that walked through the door of the thrift store he worked at, he would stay. 

Alone. 

Virgil ambled through the aisles, straightening and polishing little statuettes on the shelves, adjusting the clothes on the racks, basically just stalling until he could go home. 

As he got off work, he ambled down the street, head low, earbuds in. A Hamilton playlist looped in his ears. 

Three songs, he arrived at his apartment. 

The blast of cold air as he entered was a welcome change from the summers heat. 

Ascending two flights of stairs, he opened the door to 304 and called half-heartedly, “I’m home!” 

No one answered, just as Virgil expected. Ella was still at work. 

He hung his hoodie over a chair and collapsed into it, head down on the kitchen table. 

“They’re not coming.” His voice was muffled, talking to no one. 

He sat up. What was it Ella always said? “Be an optimist, so you can be happy all the time. “ He scoffed. Virgil hadn’t been able to think of a response then, but he had one now. 

“It’s better to be a pessimist, because I’m either right or pleasantly surprised.” 

Still, he would try. For Ella. 

She deserved it. 

_A six-year-old Virgil cowered under the blanket on the couch, listening to Ella and his father shout at each other.   
_

_“How could you do this, Ella? You are thirteen! Why would you ever want to run away? Run away from me! Your family!”  
_

_Virgil couldn’t understand why they were yelling, but he didn’t like it. He flinched and burrowed deeper under the covers when Ella screamed back.   
_

_“You said that I would be living here for the rest of my life! You said I wouldn’t make it in the world! I wanna show you that I don’t need your ‘love’, so let me go!”  
_

_There was a smack, and Virgil let out a quiet, fearful sound.   
_

_“You will always need me,” his father growled.   
_

_“No!” Ella whimpered. “Leave me alone!”   
_

_She backed away, muffled sobs emerging from her throat.   
_

_“Fine. I’ll leave.” Virgil heard his father go into the closet, grabbing the suitcase.   
_

_There was a rustling of paper, and a slam on the kitchen table.   
_

_“This is for you. Call me as soon as you run out.”  
_

_The door slammed, and Ella collapsed into one of the kitchen chairs.   
_

_Virgil peeked out from under the blanket and crept over to her, dragging it behind him.   
_

_A ten-dollar bill sat at the center of the table, and Ella was staring at it, shaking.   
_

_His little arms wrapped around his big sister, and she hugged him close.   
_

_“We don’t need him, Virgil.” she whispered into his ear. “We can take on the world all on our own.”  
_

_And they did. _

A burned-out Virgil sat quietly on the art-deco bench outside the thrift store. 

He had had quite a few entitled customers that day, who didn’t seem to understand that Virgil was a person. 

He watched the strings twist and wind around each other, creating a lonely sort of dance. 

He couldn’t take it anymore. 

Virgil got up and dashed down the street, tears welling in his eyes. 

These soulmates were driving him crazy! Why couldn’t they see that he was lonely? That they had been together six days, and Virgil was...

Alone.

He blindly dodged around pedestrians, keeping his eyes trained on the sidewalk. 

Then he ran into three people stepping out of a building. 

“Sorry,” he murmured, sidestepping and continuing to run. 

He ran right up into his apartment, blowing straight by Ella and slamming the door to his room. 

He began to pace, talking out loud. 

“You’re not wanted. You’re never wanted.” 

He’s crying now. 

“That’s why Dad left us. Because of you.” 

He finally curled into a ball on his bed and sobbed till he had no tears left. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i’m sorry
> 
> Dedications: Da_Useless_Queer, artsy mom friend, extravagant bi, sleepless-in-starbucks, Triple Kiss anon, and lia’s small army of anons(welcome Dee)


	11. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Last soulmate!! And the most difficult one...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: arguing

Patton straightened up, blushing, from where he had fallen into Logan’s chest.

“S-sorry,” he breathed, looking anywhere but the taller man’s face.

But Logan and Roman didn’t notice. When Patton glanced up, they were still following the other person with their eyes.

“Patton, look!” Roman grasped Patton’s shoulders and gently spun him around.

The unknown person wasn’t visible from Patton’s small height, but one thing was abundantly clear.

Three purple strings, each with different shades of blue and red, were left in their wake, getting tauter and tighter as they sped away.

Patton, Logan, and Roman hurried after their soulmate, but they had a head start, and the boys quickly lost them in the crowd.

Thankfully, the strings were easy to follow, and the three of them were led to an apartment building. They went up two flights of stairs, and knocked carefully on door 304.

It opened.

A girl, in her mid-twenties, peered out, looking surprised. Patton waved, and she straightened up.

“Oh, hello, I’m Ella. We weren’t expecting anyone, so sorry if it’s a bit of a mess.”

She led them inside the immaculate apartment, gesturing for them to sit down on the couch.

“What brings you here?” she asked, folding her hands in her lap.

Patton subtly glanced down at them as Logan replied, “I’m Logan, this is Patton, and that’s Roman. We are looking for our soulmate? They bumped into us on the street, and then ran off. We followed them here.”

Ella visibly relaxed, looking down at their strings. “I’m sorry, I thought you were- Never mind. However, if you could wait here, I’ll be right back.”

She got up and hurried into a back hallway.

Patton and Roman started talking in low voices.

“Who did she think we were? And why would she let us in if she thought we were people she shouldn’t trust?”

“Roman, it’s not our business, shhh!”

They sat quietly for a few more minutes, Patton staring at his purple string.

In the other room was his soulmate! Their soulmate!

_ I can’t wait to meet them._

Ella came out again, dragging the arm of a person in a purple hoodie.

“Boys,” she announced, “This is my brother Virgil.” Virgil gave a small wave, and Patton’s eyes fastened on to the threads that led from them to him.

They stood up and introduced themselves.

Virgil seemed distant as they shook his hand, and he was silent as Ella spoke up again.

“Is there a particular reason why you came now?”

“Well, yes,” Patton said, eyes darting worriedly to Virgil. “We wanna go to one of those soulmate colleges, and if Virgil wants to come he can, but he doesn’t have to.”

Ella’s face broke into a smile. “Virgil did want to go to college, but we didn’t want him to go alone.”

Virgil’s voice was laced with venom when he said, “I don’t want to go to college, Ella. I don’t know anyone.”

“Virgil, please, this is better. I know you don’t wanna leave me, but trust me, I can take care of myself.”

Roman leaned forward and opened his mouth, but Logan put a hand on his arm. The siblings were arguing fiercely.

“Ella, I’m staying here with you! You need my help! Plus, I don’t have to go to college! My dream was dumb!”

“Please, Virgil, you have to listen! Just because we’ve been together for our lives doesn’t mean that it has to stay that way! Go! Be happy! Spend time with your soulmates!”

“Don’t you need me? I could help! We have something that works! Why change?”

“Not everything stays the same, Virgil! I don’t need your help anymore!” Ella clapped a hand over her mouth and fell silent, looking shocked.

With an angry face, Virgil turned towards the others. “I have a question.” Virgil said, voice like ice. “Why didn’t you come sooner? Enjoying time without the burden of a fourth soulmate?”

“No!” Patton was shocked. “I wanted to leave immediately, but we had things to get together.”

“Oh.” Virgil seemed calmer now. “Okay.” Ella spoke up again. “Listen, Virgil, I didn’t mean that. I just wanted you to experience things. Your soulmates seem amazing, and I want you to enjoy life!”

Virgil smiled slightly, and gave Ella a big hug. “I’m sorry, guys,” he said, turning towards them. “but I’d rather stay here. Maybe someday we can be together, but...” Virgil fell silent, a confused expression on his face.

“That’s okay,” said Roman, standing up and helping Patton and Logan to their feet. “If you feel that way, then we respect your decision. We will miss you, though.”

Virgil nodded, still looking confused, but he waved goodbye as they left the apartment.

Down the stairs and out the door, Patton’s mind was spinning. A life without all of his soulmates? Even though it was Virgil’s decision, Patton’s heart still felt like it was made of lead.

He turned around and looked up, catching Virgil looking through a window. Patton waved, but Virgil quickly turned away.

Trailing behind Logan and Roman, Patton berated himself silently for not asking for Virgil’s number.

_Who knows when I’ll see him again?_

Tapping feet sounded behind Patton, and he spun around just in time for something to slam into his chest.

A small shape in a purple hoodie wrapped its arms around Patton.

Logan and Roman must have noticed too, because they joined in.

“I changed my mind.” Virgil mumbled into Patton’s sleeve.

Enclosed by his soulmates, hidden in their warmth, Patton’s smile overwhelmed his face.

Finally, they were all together.

What could possibly go wrong?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i have been waiting for this chapter for SO LONG
> 
> Dedications: sleepless-in-starbucks, Triple Kiss, Da_Useless_Queer, artsy mom friend, grandma(ily), gay therapist, insolent yeeter, and lias small army of anons


	12. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The boys are on their way back to Patton’s house...uh oh.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: yelling, arguments, threats

The boys had been driving for almost an entire day in complete silence. After the hug, Virgil seemed to close himself off from the others, sketching in silence with earbuds in. 

So Patton was a little nervous as they pulled into a hotel parking lot, especially after what happened last time. 

In their room, Virgil looked a bit afraid, but said, “Can I talk to you guys about something?”

Patton nodded, a smile on his face, but inside he braced himself. Would it be more bad news?

“What boundaries are there? Like, if I-I wanted to give a hug to all of you, right now, who would b-be comfortable with it?” 

“Oh!”Patton relaxed. “Well, I guess I’m good with anything. What about you, Logan?”

“I am partial more to nicknames and wordplays, if it is anything physical, I would prefer to initiate it.”

“I love giving people nicknames!” Roman piped up from where he was digging through his suitcase, looking for his toothbrush. “As for me, I’m a romantic-“

“Hah! Roman-tic!”

Roman playfully glared at Patton.

“Anyway, I’m a romantic, so really I’m good with anything too. Virgil?”

He looked down uncomfortably.   
“I-uh-I like nicknames too, but c-can you guys ask before you do anything else?”

“Okay!” Patton chirped, and the other two made noises of assent as well. “I’m glad we talked about this! Thanks for bringing it up, Virgil!”

Roman slid to the floor. “I’m suddenly in the mood to learn a bit more about you guys!”

Soon the soulmates were seated on the ground, quizzing each other. 

“Okay, my turn.” Patton said. “What majors are you going for? I might try English Literature. Not sure what I’d do with it, but books are pretty cool.” 

“I like the kids who come to the planetarium, so I think I may do education. Trust me, I do not want to go anywhere near the path my parents planned. Stars are amazing, but I’d rather be a teacher.”

“Theater!” Roman hooted.

Eyes flicked to Virgil, who shifted awkwardly. 

“I like to draw, so I might do Fine Arts. But I wanna be an animator?”He said the last part in a whisper, as if he expected the others to laugh. 

Instead, Roman looked like he was going to die of happiness. “An animator? Like for Disney? Ohmigosh, that’s awesome! I think you’ll be great at it!” 

“Really? Th-thanks!”

“My turn! Alright, did any of you ever... date around? Patton?”

Patton gave an offended gasp. “No! I am loyal to my soulmates!”

“I didn’t really leave the house.” Logan said dryly. 

“I was pretty busy too.” Virgil responded. “Roman?”

“Wha-no-I- fine, yeah, I dated this guy when I was fourteen, but he broke my heart and I vowed not to date anyone but my soulmates. And here we are! Though, I don’t know if what we are is called dating yet...” 

“Well, why don’t we make it official?” Virgil said, surprising everyone. 

“Logically, we’ve known each other for about two days. We should wait until we actually bond.” 

Patton pouted. “I guess you’re right, Logan, but I do care for you guys. A lot.” 

“Very much appreciated, Patton, however, I believe it’s time for us to go to bed. Roman appears to be asleep already.” 

“Hey! I’m awake!”

They all stood up, but Virgil caught Patton’s sleeve. 

“Hm? What’s up?”

“Where are we going? Like, we’ve been driving all day, and I don’t think we’re going to college now, we haven’t even picked one yet. Unless... you picked one without me?”

“No! We’re headed back to my house.”

“Oh, okay.”

They all got ready for bed, but Patton’s mind was troubled as he laid down. 

His mother was at his house. 

Patton’s hands fumbled with the keys he never thought he would have to use again, and he unlocked the door, swinging it open wide for his soulmates. 

He led them on a quick tour of the empty house, finally entering the living room and sinking into a couch. 

“Patton! This is amazing! I can’t wait to m-Pat, what’s wrong?”

Patton couldn’t even acknowledge the compliments. He opened his mouth to speak-

“Patton! You’re home! Oh, I am so excited to meet your soulmate! I-“

She stopped short at the sight of them, lip curling into disgust. 

“Patton,” she said, voice hard. “Come with me.”

His soulmates looked up worriedly as he followed his mother into the office. 

She rounded on him as soon as she shut the door. “What did I tell you? One soulmate. Why didn’t you listen? _Why didn’t you listen_?”

Patton was suddenly filled with rage. “You can’t tell me what to do! I won’t let you take them away from me! I won’t even let you try! Not again. Did you ever wonder why you haven’t seen my strings since the day I got them? I haven’t trusted you in years, _Mother_,” he said, almost spitting the word at her, “and I still don’t!”

She stalked across the room, and all of Patton’s anger was replaced by fear. 

“Listen, Patton,” she hissed. “I am never letting you go to a college with them. You will stay here and go to the college I approve of, and your ‘soulmates’ can return to whatever hole they crawled out of.”

He backed into the wall, shrinking into his mother’s angry gaze.   
“And if you try to stop me, I’ll-“

Roman threw open the door, Logan and Virgil behind him. 

Logan and Virgil helped Patton up gently, as Roman grabbed Patton’s mother by the arm, pulling her away from Patton. 

“Listen here, ma’am. I have no idea why you were threatening Patton, but he is my soulmate, and I will never let you do that again.”

She bit and scratched at Roman, fighting tooth and nail to get back to Patton. 

The other two boys stepped in, forming a shield, protecting Patton from the only family he had ever known. 

Finally, she slumped into the office chair, and the boys led Patton out the door. 

“Wait!”

He pulled away and rushed back inside, ignoring the others calls of “Patton!”.

She was still in the chair, head in her hands. 

“Look,” Patton breathed.

She looked up. 

“I’m sorry that you can’t understand how much these people mean to me, Mother. But maybe one day, we can try again.” 

He turned and exited the house, into his soulmates welcoming love. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> my friend: are you ever going to write about a straight couple?  
me: hmm. hmm! interesting thought. but no
> 
> Dedications: sleepless-in-starbucks, Triple Kiss anon, Da_Useless_Queer, artsy mom friend, my grandma, gay therapist, insolvent yeeter, beanie kid, and lia’s small army of anons(welcome silver, pineapple, centimetre, and because my memory is the worst and i’m not sure if i welcomed you, hi rainbow!)


	13. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Time to decide a college!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: let me know if I missed any

The bell over the door rang as the boys walked into the library.

A lady waved at Patton from behind the counter. “Hi!”

She hurried over and gave Patton a big hug. She turned to Roman, Logan, and Virgil. “You must be Patton’s soulmates!! I am so happy to meet you!”

From the way her eyes traced their strings, it was abundantly clear that she could see them, and Logan held out a hand for her to shake, saying as she did, “I’m Logan Logiciel.”

She shook it vigorously. “I’m Mrs. Valea.”

The other two introduced themselves as well, and Patton bounced in place in glee.

“Mrs. Valea is one of my favorite people in this town. She was a huge help to me and this library was basically my safe place.” Mrs. Valea gave him another hug, then sped back to her desk, a huge smile on her face.

“Can we head to a back corner? There’s someone else I wanna call.”

The phone vibrated, and the camera appeared with a face smiling out at Patton.

The other three were out of the cameras view, and Patton looked up at them, giving a tiny wink.

Logan thought he was melting.

“Hey, Pat!”

“Hi, Joan!”

“What’s up?”

“Well, I have people that I think you should meet.”

The person-Joan-gasped, “Your soulmates?”

In response, Patton spun the phone around.

“Hey! I’m Roman!”

Joan’s face was split into a giant smile, and they seemed to be speechless.

“I’m Virgil.”

“And I’m Logan.”

“Where are you guys? That looks like our library.”

“It is!” chirped Patton, coming around to the other side of the table to stand with his soulmates. “Where’s your soulmate, Joan? I wanna meet them!”

Joan suddenly looked uncomfortable. “I-uh-I may have gotten lost...”

Patton laughed loudly, startling a long-haired girl at another table, who fearfully picked up her book and walked away fast. “Whoops. What do you mean you got lost? How do you get lost?”

“I don’t know? Whoever they are, they got their soulmate string wrapped around a tree. So I’m headed back the opposite direction now, apparently.”

“Awwww. Well, we’re here to decide a soulmate college, so I’ll see you later!”

“Okay. It was nice meeting all of you!”

The three waved to the person in the beanie, and Patton walked away to say goodbye in private.

_ “Patton, I just want you to know that I am so happy for you. You seem a thousand times happier, and you are so proud. I see the way you look at them, and your smile is so wide. I know you love them_.”

Patton said something back, but Logan didn’t hear it. His mind was buzzing.

Patton skidded over to the computer where Virgil was logging in, phone slid back into his pocket.

“Alright.” Virgil said, clicking through the search page. “Here’s a college called The Drew Institute, but it doesn’t have the education major. This one, the Carcino College-oooh, their library is 64000 square feet- oh, well, it doesn’t have _any_ of our majors.”

Suddenly, Logan’s phone rang. He excused himself to the parking lot defeatedly and answered the phone, knowing what was going to happen. “Hi, sweetheart!”

“Hello, Mother.”

“So when are you coming back to us, dear?” Her voice was sickly sweet, and Logan could almost imagine her face as he answered with a cold voice.

“Mother. I have told you the last four times you have called. I have no desire to go back to you. In fact, I would like nothing more than to block your number from my phone.”

His mother’s voice was sharp and filled with hate now. “If you block your father or my number, then I promise you will regret it.”

She hung up, and Logan took a deep, calming breath.

Re-entering the library, his soulmates were excitedly waving him over. “Look!” Roman said, gesturing at the computer screen. An orange-and-yellow banner displayed across the screen, white words reading Sanders University for Unique Soulmates.

“Well, I do believe that we are a set of ‘unique soulmates’.”

“Yeah!”

Virgil was clicking around the site. “Guys, take a look at this.” A small note off to the side read _If you wish to attend, please come meet with the headmaster._

One week later, the boys were sitting in a small room, waiting to meet with Headmaster Sanders.

A man opened the door and called, “Anzine, Logiciel, Moratile, Prity!” They all stood and followed him down a hall, cramming into a rather small office with only two chairs. Roman and Logan took the seats, Patton stood at the side, and Virgil leaned against the back wall.

“I’m Thomas Sanders,” the man said, holding out his hand to shake. “My grandma started this college because of my own strange soulmate. I’ve always had my string, from the moment when I was born. When I went to daycare when I was three, I apparently met my soulmate. I trusted them enough, and my string disappeared. Now I just hope that I can find them again.” He flicked his gaze onto their faces. “How about you? I read your applications-“

“They’re here already?” Virgil cut in.

“Yep! They’re fairly good, too. Think of this as your last stage of application. The goal of SUUS is to bring people who aren’t ‘normal’ together. So what is your string like? What makes you unique?”

“Uhh, there are four of us?” Patton said, looking at him in confusion.

“And?”

“What?”

“Oh. I’m sorry, but it isn’t very unique for more than two soulmates to occur.”

”It isn’t?”

“No, in fact, it’s quite typical.”

Patton nodded sadly, and they all stood up and shuffled out the door.

“I do apologize. I thought that having more than one string was strange.” Logan muttered to the others.

Thomas stopped, turning around. “Did you say that you have more than one?”

“Well, yes?” Roman answered in confusion.

“Hold on one second!” Thomas dashed back to his office, returning a few seconds later, waving a few pieces of paper.

“Typically,” he said breathlessly, “soulmates with more then one partner still only have one string. Their strings all lead to a small knot in the middle.”

He shook their hands warmly and sent them back to the waiting room, calling “I’ll see you on moving in day!”

As they proceeded out to the car, Patton slid into the drivers seat, a huge smile going from ear to ear.

Suddenly, the color drained from his face.

“What?” asked Roman, looking at him with worry.

“I just thought of something.”

“What is it?” Virgil looked at him quizzically.

“In order to get our stuff together for college, we all have to go home.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dedications: sleepless-in-starbucks, triple kiss anon, da useless queer, my gay therapist, artsy mom friend, my grandma, insolent yeeter, beanie boi, extravagant bi, and lia’s small army of anons(welcome cookie and tropical flower)


	14. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Moving into college!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: none, really. let me know if i missed anything

Getting into Patton’s house was easy. All they had to do was wait until she left for work, then Patton unlocked the door and they all helped him pack up. 

Logan’s house was harder. 

“Wait here.” Logan said, unbuckling his seatbelt and opening the car door. 

“Logan? Aren’t we coming in to help?” Patton asked, worry on his face. 

Logan shook his head. “It’s...better if you stay in here. Trust me. I don’t want you getting-“

He paused, then shook his head as if to himself and shut the car door. 

Roman watched him go from the window. “We are gonna go with him, right? I mean, his mom and all?”

Patton took a deep breath, brows furrowed, and answered. “Roman, I think we should respect his wishes.”

They sat nervously in silence for about fifteen minutes, Patton anxiously checking the time on his watch. 

When Logan came walking quickly out of the house, dragging his suitcase behind him, Patton let out a breath of relief, and allowed a smile to cross his face. 

“Let’s go, Patton.” Logan said, locking the door and clicking his seatbelt on. 

The car started, and they were off on the short drive to Roman’s house. 

“Oh. My. Goodness! Roman, is this your fourth soulmate? He’s so cute!”

From the other room, Roman yelled back, “Mom! You are a married lesbian! Stop embarrassing Virgil!”

True to Roman’s word, Virgil’s cheeks were as red as a tomato, and Patton quickly distracted Rosie Mae by showing her the map of SUUS that Mr. Sanders had given them. 

Roman hauled his suitcase out to the car, a sad expression on his face. 

“What’s wrong, Ro?” 

“Patton, it’s horrible! There’s no room for my stuffed animals!”  
He dropped his suitcase on the ground and flopped dramatically against the car. “Whatever shall I do?”

Logan walked out of the house, quietly holding Mr. Cuddles behind his back. He smiled at Patton, giving him a tiny wink as he placed the bear in Roman’s spot and shut the door. 

Patton smiled, taking Roman’s suitcase and packing it in the back with Logan’s and his own. 

They all went inside, where they found Virgil having a conversation with Katie, who was showing him all of the toys that Roman had given her. 

“And this one was his-“

Roman stopped down next to Katie, giving her a big hug while saying, “Katie-Cat, we gotta go now, okay? I love you.”

“Do you really have to go, Roman? I want you to stay!”

Roman apologized and led her by the hand into the kitchen where Roman and Patton hugged Rosie Mae goodbye, and Logan and Virgil shook her hand, then they all traipsed out to the car sadly. 

“Mr. Cuddles?!!”

  
They parked in front of Virgil’s apartment building and were shocked by the moving van outside. 

Ella walked out, carrying a few boxes in her arms. 

“Ella? Are you moving?” Virgil asked, getting out of the car and running over , enveloping her in a hug. 

“Yeah, sorry, Virge. There’s no point in staying here when I only need one bedroom.”

“Oh. So...what are you gonna do with all my stuff?”

“You can look through some boxes. If you see something you want, then take it.”

Virgil gave them a list of what to look for, sending Roman off to find shirts, Logan looking for sketchbooks and his portfolio, and Patton on the hunt for his books and school supplies. 

A few minutes passed and Patton heard Roman squeal. “Virgil! You never told me you liked Disney!” He pulled out a sweatshirt with Baymax from Big Hero 6 on it. “Can I steal these?”

Virgil rolled his eyes. “No, Roman, we can’t bring them.”

With a huff, Roman moved on to search another box, but Patton was sure he saw Virgil sneak the box into the car. 

They put their findings into a suitcase and packed it into the small, now extremely crowded, car. 

Virgil was talking fearfully with Ella when they walked back. “What if I lose your number, or my phone dies, or something, and I can’t talk to you? What do I do?”

“How ‘bout this. I give my number to your soulmates. Then you can call from their phone.”

Virgil nervously agreed, and they exchanged phone numbers. 

“I love you, Virgil. Enjoy college!”

They all waved goodbye, and started home. 

  
Patton placed his bags on a bed, then did a little dance around the room. Virgil was going to be rooming with him!

Well, technically, they were all rooming together. But there were two different rooms with beds in them, separated by a small common area. And Virgil was with him!

Roman and Virgil walked in together, and Roman immediately collapsed onto the couch dramatically. “This is beautiful! I’m so excited!”

Patton giggled. “Don’t admire it for too long, Roman. We gotta get unpacked, and that tour of the campus is in about forty-five minutes.”

He looked around. “Does anyone know where Logan is?”

“Right here.” Logan answered, pulling open the door and dragging in the last of the bags. “I had to take a phone call.”

Thirty minutes later, they were on their way to the theater. The footpaths were nice and taken care of, and Patton was almost dancing with excitement. They were finally here!

After the headmaster had gone through his speeches, he brought a few soulmates to the stage to share their story. 

A girl’s string had fallen off when her boyfriend went into a coma. 

A pair of girls had a string that was the consistency of actual string. 

But the one Patton found most interesting was the person in the tan sweater-vest. “Remy and I were childhood friends before our strings appeared. We were playing together when they came, and as we ran back to show our families, we realized they couldn’t stretch. I really don’t mind, though. Just means we can’t go far from each other, like Ruby and Sapphire!”

They turned and kissed the person next to them, clad in a leather jacket. 

They were led out to their groups for the campus tour. 

“Hello, my name is Gwen, she-her pronouns. I have a string with only one color. Let me tell you, it was difficult finding my boyfriend!” their tour leader said, with a smile. 

The group twittered politely and she led them off. 

Around the campus they went, Gwen pointing out the different buildings and areas of the grounds. 

Patton had to distract Logan to get him away from the extravagant library, and when Roman got a good look at the theater building, Patton had to physically drag him away, taking his hand to keep him from going back. 

When they returned to their dorm, Logan immediately sat down on the couch and began writing. 

“Whatcha doin?”

“I believe we need to take a trip to the grocery store. Do we have time to go now?”

“I think so!”

They all loaded back into the car, and headed to a Walmart. 

Roman bounded out of the passenger side door, and opened the door gallantly for Virgil, who blushed. 

They policed the aisles, Patton sneaking as many cookies as possible into the cart without Logan noticing. 

But that all turned out be for naught, when Logan scooped three jars of jam into the cart. “It’s my favorite,” he responded to Virgil’s slightly judging glance. 

They were just about done, when Logan went missing. 

They found him a few aisles over, staring at a wall of onesies. 

“My father got me one of these unicorn ones when I was a child, but I grew out of it. It-it was probably one of my favorite things as a child.”

Patton led him away, asking him questions about the onesie, why he got it, what it was for, stuff like that. Out of the corner of his eyes he saw Roman sizing up Logan. 

He whispered something to Virgil, who pulled a onesie off the wall and stuffed it in the cart. 

And then, they headed back to SUUS. 

Together. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> remile!!
> 
> Dedication: sleepless-in-starbucks, triple kiss anon, Da_Useless_Queer, insolent yeeter, beanie boi, grandma, extravagant bi, and lia’s small army of anons(i believe tropical flower is the most recent one, so hi!)


	15. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Classes, soulmates, and dates.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: none???

It was Logan’s idea to start dating officially.

He brought it up before classes started, while they were all lounging in the common area. 

“What my plan was,” he said, oblivious to the other three’s red faces, “was to have a schedule for when we go on ‘dates’.”

“Yeah, that’s a really good idea, actually,” Patton said, the blush dying down. “When would the dates be?”

“Every Saturday? We could each plan one every month, as there are four weeks in a month.”

Roman leaped to his feet as well. “I’m excited! Lo, I nominate you to go first, since it was your idea.”

“Very well. Patton, would you like to plan our second outing?”

“Okay!” Patton looked over at Virgil, who was still flushed pink. “Um, Roman, why don’t you go third? That way, you, Virgil, can have as much time as possible.”

“Al-alright.”

Patton knelt down, so he was face to face with Virgil, who looked quickly at the couch. “Are you sure that you’re okay with this, Virge? We don’t have to.” 

“No, I’ll do it...I’m excited.”

Patton cast him one last worried glance, then stood up. 

  
Logan’s date rolled around before the first day of classes, on the first Saturday of September. 

He didn’t do anything. 

They spent the day fooling around, getting ready for the first day. 

Logan disappeared once, but came back without a word. When Patton asked where he’d been, he just shrugged. 

It was only when Patton stood up to go to bed that Logan grabbed his arm. 

“Wait!” he said, quickly releasing him with a blush. “Come with me.”

They followed him across the silent campus, the grass crunching under their feet as he led them up a hill. 

Spread across the crest of the hill was a picnic blanket. 

Logan took his seat, and Roman followed. Virgil curled up on the edge, Patton smiling brightly in the dark as he sat too. 

“As you may know, I worked at a planetarium for a few years. Tonight is-“ 

He was cut off by the other three’s gasps as shooting stars streaked across the sky. 

“-a meteor shower.” Logan finished, a grin audible in his voice. “I believed this would be an adequate outing.”

“It’s perfect.” Roman breathed. “I just-wow. “

“While we wait for the next meteor, shall I point out some constellations?”

There were murmured noises of assent, and Patton settled down, leaning into Roman’s shoulder as Logan’s soothing voice filled the cool night air. 

  
It was the first day of classes, and Roman was tearing his room apart. 

Patton watched warily from the doorway as he dug vigorously through his bag. “Um...what are you looking for?” 

“My blue binder! I can’t find it and I don’t know what I’m gonna do without it!”

Virgil appeared in the doorway next to Patton, holding a bright blue, three-ring binder. “Found this on the couch.” He tossed the binder to a startled Roman and left the room. 

Patton was the only one without a morning class, and an idea had formed in his head. “Hey, would you guys mind if I walked you to class?”

“Not at all!” Roman called out, swinging a tan messenger bag across his chest and he entered the common area. 

“I don’t mind, either.”

“I don’t care,” Virgil muttered. 

“Okay, well then, let’s go!” 

Logan walked into his building first, and they waved goodbye to him as he followed a person in a leather jacket inside. 

“Goodbye!” Roman shouted as he bounced inside. Virgil looked away in embarrassment and Patton laughed as he continued on with his soulmate-_boyfriend!_\- to the Art building. 

He gave a little wave to Virgil, who headed inside. 

Patton looked around, considering going to the library before his first class, but his thoughts were shattered when he heard Virgil scream. 

Patton dashed inside- and nearly bumped into Virgil, who was staring in shock at a tall person with very large shoulders. 

“Hello?” they said, waving their hand in front of his face. “What’s wrong?”

Virgil found his voice. “Miss...Samantha?”

She frowned. “Most people know me as Miss Picoty.”

“Miss Samantha, it’s me, Virgil. I-“ 

She gasped, and her eyes welled with tears, which she quickly wiped away as a short blonde woman sidled up. 

“Sweetheart, why are you crying?”

Miss Samantha ignored her and addressed Virgil. 

“Virgil, I never thought I’d see you again. When you and Ella moved, I wish I’d kept in better touch. I worried about you day and night. “

The other woman snaked her arm around Miss Samantha. “Babe, c’mon, what’s up?”

Miss Samantha unwrapped her arm. “Emily, I told you. No PDA when we’re teaching. We must fill young minds with wisdom!”

Miss Emily pulled away and looked up into Miss Samantha’s face. “Darling,” she said gently. “we teach Photography. ‘Wisdom’ doesn’t quite cut it.”

Miss Samantha looked away, muttering, “It’s an important skill.”

Miss Emily laughed, waving goodbye as she led Miss Samantha away. 

Virgil turned to Patton, and his expression was the happiest Patton had ever seen. 

Then, just as quickly, it shut down, and Virgil looked away. 

As Patton left the building, he couldn’t help wondering. 

_What’s wrong with Virgil?_

  
Patton decided that for his date, they’d go to a coffee shop that he had heard about from a guy in his class. 

The tiny bell chimes as they walked into the shop, and Patton grinned as he took in the adorable surroundings. 

When they approached the counter to order, Logan let out a small noise of surprise. “Hello. I didn’t know you were employed here.” 

The person behind the counter laughed out loud. “You’re that genius, Logan, right? Oh, are these your soulmates?”

Patton smiled, but he thought he saw them wink at Logan, who blushed and said, “This is Remy. He’s in a few of my classes.”

Roman stepped forward. “Where’s your soulmate?”

Remy smiled fondly. “Emile’s at work. He works at the flower shop next door.”

Virgil said quietly, “Guys, we’re holding up the line.”

Patton looked behind them. Sure enough, a couple people had lined up behind them. “I’m sorry, Remy. We’ll let you get back to work.”

They ordered, then took their seats at the set of mismatched table and chairs. 

Patton left to go get the drinks, and set them on the table, Logan passing them out. 

Everybody laughed when Roman got whipped cream on his nose, and Patton smiled broadly. 

No matter what happened, it would all work out. 

They would be okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the sleep:writing ratio of last night is horribly, horribly unhealthy but whatever
> 
> yes, samantha and emily do exist, and yes, they act exactly like that. 
> 
> Dedications: sleepless-in-starbucks(my dude did you delete your tumblr? it’s not showing up), Triple Kiss, Da_Useless_Queer, beanie boi, extravagant bi, grandma, artsy mom friend, and lia’s small army of anons(a: hi rainbow, happy that you’re reading, b: i might never get to talk to any of you again if tumblr doesn’t get itself together, c: welcome number anon!!)


	16. Chapter 14 1/2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> a holiday ficlet!! Happy holigays!!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: death mention, holiday mention, Remus appearance(but he doesn’t talk)

Humming to himself, Patton strung lights around his room, plugging them in so the soft glow illuminated his walls. 

The garland went up next, and Patton spread a green blanket patterned with cats wearing santa hats across the bed. 

The radio was blaring ‘Jingle Bells’ and Patton sang along, shaking the bell on his hat in time with the song. 

He moved into the hallway. Patton lit holiday candles and placed a santa hat on the bear sitting on the shelf. 

Patton’s mom was washing dishes in the kitchen, singing high and gentle to the song on the radio. 

He was glad to see her happy again. 

Her soulmate, his father, was dead. 

Patton didn’t know him, he had walked out on them when Patton was four. But his mother had been convinced he would return, with the gold colored mark on her pinkie finger to prove how much she still trusted him. 

Until the gold turned to black. 

Patton had been home for Thanksgiving when it happened, and his mother didn’t begin to move around until the beginning of winter break. 

_I hope my soulmate wouldn’t want to leave_, he thought. 

_That is, if I have a soulmate_. 

Lately, Patton had taken to wishing as often as possible for his string, hoping that at one point, their thoughts would coordinate, and the string would appear. 

_I wish I had a soulmate_. 

“Mom! Mom!” Patton ran down the hall, his newly formed strings trailing behind him. “Look!”

  
As quietly as possible, Logan stuffed his hands into his gloves and put on his coat. 

His parents were upstairs in their office, there was a blanket of freshly fallen snow on the ground, and it was time for Logan’s annual sneaking-out-of-the-house-to-go-play-in-the-snow. He always got caught, but it was worth it. 

He slid his feet into his boots and pulled open the back door. 

The cold air stung his nose as he took a deep breath. 

He shuffled out into the snow, falling to his knees and packing the snow into bricks. 

If he made an igloo, he could tell his parents that he used his Physics studies to help it stay up, right?

Snow brick by snow brick, the igloo went up, until finally Logan crawled inside and sat there, a big smile on his face as he looked around at what he had built. 

Then, just as quickly, the smile drained away, replaced by hot tears rolling down his face. 

_I wish I wasn’t so lonely_. 

He had no friends, no family who cared, he might not even have a soulmate! 

Neither of his parents had or were soulmates, and it was most likely genetic, so Logan was going to be alone for the rest of his life. 

_Stop crying!_ he told himself. _You’re making a fool out of yourself!_

Unbidden, but not necessarily unwanted, the thought rose from the back of his head. 

_I wish it were possible for me to have a soulmate. _

“Logan, what are you doing away from your work?”

Roman pelted his mother’s team with snowballs, Rosie Mae shrieking with laughter. 

To keep them distracted, Roman called, “You won’t beat us!”

Rosie Mae shouted back, “Is that ri-Oh!”

Remus had just snuck up behind them and slipped snow down both of their coats. 

Roman laughed as Christine shook herself off and shouted, “That’s playing dirty! Remus, get back here!”

Remus sprinted back to their side and took cover behind the fort. 

“You think that you kids can beat us?” Rosie Mae yelled, smacking Roman in the face with a snowball. “We’re the Soulmate Duo! We have an emotional connection!”

Christine looked at her strangely. “...No, we don’t.”

Rosie Mae tossed her next snow ball at her wife. “Yes we do, shut up, honey.”

Roman sighed happily from where he was shielded by the fort. 

_A soulmate sounds nice_, he thought. _I wish I had one_. 

His pinkie began to tingle, and with growing excitement, he yanked off his glove. 

Virgil rolled snow into a tightly packed ball, careful not to slip. 

The roof of their apartment building was small, and cluttered with machines, but Fred the snowman was built up there every year. 

“Ella,” he asked, still struggling to push the now huge ball, “do you have a soulmate?”

His sister, pushing another ball across the roof, answered, “Yes, I do. I don’t want to go with them though, it’s better to stay here and take care of you.”

“Wait, why? Have you met them?”

“Yes, they came one day when you were at school.”

“Why couldn’t I meet them?” 

Ella stopped pushing, and answered, “I didn’t want you to get scared that I would leave you.”

“Oh.”

“Virgil, it’s okay. I’ll go find them eventually. But for now, it’s nothing to worry about.”

“Will they take you back? Did I ruin your chances of getting a soulmate? I’m sorry, Ella, I didn’t mean to!” 

“It’s okay, Virgil. Anyways, do you want a soulmate?”

Virgil looked down and muttered, “I did, but now I’m not so sure. I mean, what if they leave me like Dad did to us?”

Ella looked at him with pity. “If that happens, Vee, you can come back to me, okay? No matter what. Now, come on, Fred isn’t gonna build himself!”

As Virgil stuck the carrot in for the nose, he found himself, despite his worries, thinking, _I wish I had a soulmate_. 

“Ella! Look!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so they apparently don’t live in florida bc my sleep-deprived brain went hnnnnnngghsnow and i went with it. 
> 
> also, for the holidays, i am giving you all this chapter and a virtual box of tissues. you’re gonna need it. 
> 
> Dedications: sleepless-in-starbucks, triple kiss anon, rainbow anon, dee anon(idk if you’re reading but if you are hi), Da_Useless_Queer, extravagant bi, artsy mom friend, and lia’s small army of anons


	17. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And now...the moment you’ve all been waiting for... *spotlight flashes on the stage and the boys sashay out, wearing dresses*

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: boy in dresses

The next week flew by, the four of them growing closer every day. 

From study sessions in the campus library, to Logan bringing them all cookies, to Roman and Patton holding hands in class, sharing shy smiles whenever they looked up. 

Friday evening found them doing their homework on the couch in their dorm, cuddled together and working hard. 

Logan’s arm was draped across the back of the couch, lightly resting on Patton’s back. Patton’s hand was gently brushing Roman’s, who looked towards the fourth member of their little group. 

Virgil had been doing homework with the rest of them, but he had fallen asleep. His head was now leaning slightly on Roman’s shoulder, who was careful not the move. 

Virgil had started opening up to them over the last couple days. 

Not opening up, really, more like...letting things slip. 

Roman almost shuddered, thinking of Virgil’s father. All of his soulmates had horrible pasts, and Roman just wanted to gather them all up in a big hug and never let go. 

He promised himself that he would protect them all. If anyone from their horrible, horrible families tried to contact them, tried to come anywhere near them, Roman would- he would-

_I don’t even know what I’ll do. But it won’t be pretty_. 

Patton tapped him on the arm, the red and blue strings brushing against him as he whispered something Roman didn’t quite catch. 

He popped his earbuds out and asked Patton to repeat it. 

“I asked if you knew that your date was tomorrow?”

Of course he knew. Roman had been buzzing with excitement all week. 

He leaned towards the other two. “Yep, I know. I forgot to ask you something though. Are you guys comfortable in a dress?”

A groggy voice came from beside him. “What’s goin on?”

Roman sat back, cursing himself for waking up the smaller man. “We’re talking about tomorrow’s date!”

“Oh.” Virgil immediately looked uncomfortable, and Roman wondered why. 

“Yeah. I was asking the other two if they were comfortable in a dress.” 

Logan looked thoughtful. “I’ve never gotten to try one on, but I suppose if it’s practical and comfortable, I wouldn’t mind. However, I did not bring a dress with me.”

“That’s okay. I have a few in my bag. Hang on, let me get them.“

He popped up from the couch and hurried into the room that he and Logan shared. 

Opening up his drawer, he scooped up a wad of colored material into his arms and walked back out. 

Virgil had a bright red face, Patton was giggling quietly, and Logan was smirking. 

“What’s up?”

Virgil buried his head into his arms, but Patton answered, grinning widely. “He didn’t realize that he fell asleep on you.”

“Oh. Uhhh...”

He spread the dresses across the coffee table, and Logan rolled his eyes. “You brought seven dresses? Really, Roman? This is why you couldn’t fit any stuffed animals.”

Offended noises came from Roman. “These are absolutely necessary, Logan! We need them for tomorrow!”

“I understand, Roman, but seven?”

Patton popped in. “What are we doing tomorrow?”

“It’s a surprise! Now, can we try on the dresses? I wanna make sure that they are comfortable.”

For the next hour, the four soulmates tried on all the dresses. 

Roman didn’t really need to try them on, he knew which ones fit him, but he could never pass up a chance to show off his dresses. 

Patton ended up picking a white dress with blue patterns embroidered on it, while Logan picked a solid black, knee-length sleeveless dress. 

Virgil opted for a dress that Roman had made himself. 

It had stripes running on the sleeves that were the colors of their strings, and the bottom of the dress flared out around the knees. 

Roman had his favorite dress, and he twirled around so that the skirt bounced off, making it look like flames were at the bottom of the skirt. 

Patton was giddy with excitement, trying to guess where they would go. 

But when Logan looked at the time, then ushered them all to bed, Roman couldn’t sleep. 

Something about the past few hours had been bugging him. Nothing had really happened though. Logan had taken a phone call and left the room, but that was really it. And Logan always took phone calls. 

Roman pushed away the nagging thought and turned over to get more comfortable. 

Nothing was wrong. 

  
The next afternoon was hectic as they all put on their dresses and put on makeup. Logan didn’t want any, but Patton and Virgil both asked for Roman to help them. 

Patton’s light blue and Virgil’s gold eyeshadow matched perfectly with their outfits, and Roman couldn’t stop obsessing over how pretty his boyfriends were. 

They pulled up in front of the Crossed Strings dance club, Roman hopping out excitedly. 

They walked in, the person at the door drawing big black X’s on their hands to show that they were underage. 

Patton gasped. “It’s so pretty in here!” He turned and offered a hand to Virgil. “Wanna dance?”

Roman watched as Patton pulled Virgil to the dance floor, and then copied him, holding out a hand to Logan.

Something Roman found out pretty fast was that Logan was spectacularly bad at dancing. He stumbled and stepped on Roman’s feet, but he didn’t mind. 

Patton and Roman switched partners after a little while, and Virgil ended up in Roman’s arms. 

He still wouldn’t look Roman in the eyes, and it occurred to him that he was still embarrassed about what had happened yesterday. 

“Hey, Virgil? I know you probably feel bad about....y’know. But it’s okay, I promise.”

Virgil looked up, his caramel eyes focusing directly on Roman’s golden-brown ones, and opened his mouth to speak. 

Then their partners switched again, and Patton was smiling widely up at him.

“This is so fun, Roman, thank you!”

“You’re welcome, Pat! I’m glad you like it!”

They stayed at the dance club for the rest of the day, Patton found a little karaoke room in the back, and Logan beat them all at the rapping section. 

However, with a talent Roman didn’t know that Virgil had, he teamed up with Patton at beat poetry and absolutely demolished Logan and Roman. 

They left the club, in the pitch black, laughing and smiling. And Roman knew that if anything was wrong, his soulmates would have told him. 

For better or for worse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> alrighty, i hate to be That Person, but while i was writing this, i was listening to my friend’s songs. there’s no words to them, and they are techno music. but if you wanna listen, look up Corn Queen on soundcloud.
> 
> Dedications: sleepless-in-starbucks, triple kiss anon, rainbow anon, dee anon(idk if you’re reading but if you are hi), Da_Useless_Queer, extravagant bi, artsy mom friend, and lia’s small army of anons


	18. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A cozy, cuddly, onesie party.
> 
> (i know you guys are sick of hearing about the dates. this is the last one, i promise)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: uuhhhh probably a lot of cursing in the comments

It was Thursday afternoon and Patton was sitting in the library alone. 

His soulmates were all in different spots. Logan was at a class, Virgil was doing homework in the dorm, and Roman was out shopping.

He obviously wasn’t very focused though, because Patton kept getting memes in the group chat. 

**the prity-est boy**: ugh when will logan finish? 

**the prity-est boy**: the basketball game is gonna start soon

Patton wanted to go to the game as well, but they had to wait. He sent a text back. 

We have to wait for Virgil to be done too, babe.

**on the virge of laughter**: i am done. i’m heading down to the library rn 

A few minutes later, Virgil walked through the doors of the library, and sat down at Patton’s table. 

Logan texted saying that he was done fifteen minutes later, and Roman hurried back from the store. 

After dropping the stuff off to their dorm, they went to get pizza and finally made it to the basketball game. 

“How come you both wanted to come here again?”

“I played basketball for my entire life! I had so much fun, but I didn’t qualify for this team.”

Patton smiled. “What about you, Logan?”

“I played basketball in eighth grade. I was only allowed to do each sport for one year, so that was my basketball year.”

“Hey, no way! I played basketball then too! Which school did you go to?”

“I went to King High. I remember playing your school as well, but I didn’t know my soulmate was on the opposite team.”

“Well, yeah, it was before our strings. But wait, were you the scrawny kid with the glasses?”

Roman looked up at Logan, who was about five inches taller than him. “Who am I kidding, never mind!”

“Actually, yes, that was me. You look very similar, if only a bit taller.”

Patton suddenly realized that Virgil hadn’t spoken at all, and turned around to see that he was hunched over on the bleachers, earbuds in, attempting to hide. 

_Maybe he just doesn’t like basketball_, Patton thought. 

  
Friday afternoon, after everything was done, the boys found something new on campus. 

Near their dorm, off a tiny path to the side, stood a circular cluster of trees. 

Roman followed the path ahead of them, leading them into a beautiful garden. 

Benches made by the art students were gathered around the clearing in the middle, and Patton instantly picked his favorite. 

A bench where the sides looked like giant hands was off to his left, and stretched between the hands were strings that made the seat and back.

Virgil sat down on the bench and said quietly, “Guys, I have a question.”

“Shoot.” 

“Is it okay if we don’t go anywhere for our date tomorrow? Maybe we could watch a movie on my laptop, or something?”

Roman sat up from where he had been laying across the bench. “Oh! I have a better idea! My friends have a TV that I bet they would let us borrow for a night.”

And so, that was how they ended up the next day, setting up the TV after Roman’s friends had left for a big party across town. 

Logan was out in the hallway on the phone, so he was no help, and Roman couldn’t figure out which source he should go to for Disney+. 

“Was it HDMI1? No, we’ve tried that, haven’t we?”

As Patton was nodding, he felt his phone buzz against his side and pulled it out. 

The caller ID read ‘Mom’.

He held it up to show the others. “Should I answer it?”

“Nope!” Roman replied. 

“But what if she’s trying to apologize?” 

“Patton, nobody makes that big of a turnaround that quickly. Now, should we watch Mulan or Hercules?”

“But still-“

Roman rolled his eyes jokingly and waved his hand, motioning for Patton to go answer it if he wanted. 

Patton quickly exited the dorm, bumping into Logan. He looked angry for some reason, and, as Patton watched, clicked the bright red **Block Caller** button. 

“I apologize for running into you, Patton,” he said, stowing his phone back into his pocket. “What are you doing out here?”

Patton displayed his phone, which had since stopped ringing. 

Logan cringed. “Are you certain that you should do that?”

“Yes, I don’t want to be disconnected from her forever.”

Logan nodded and went aback inside. Patton briefly wondered who Logan had blocked, but then pushed the thought from his mind as he called his mother back. 

“Hi Patton! How come you didn’t answer me the first time?”

“Uh, hi mom, sorry, it was hard to excuse myself.”

“So where are you going to school?”

Patton knew that no matter if she had made a turnaround, he didn’t trust her around his soulmates just yet. But there had to be more than one college like this one, right?

“It’s a really pretty school, for soulmates who have unique strings.”

In a strange, passive-aggressive voice that Patton had heard before, his mother said, “Well, I should hope that you got accepted, having three soulmates is definitely...strange.”

Patiently, Patton replied, “Mother, that is not why I got accepted. But even if it was, I still love my soulmates. I just wish you’d underst-“

“No, I wish you’d understand! Why can’t you see that they are going to break your heart! You’re too young, but I’ve lived through it! I can tell you!”

“Mother, I am going to hang up now. Please call me back when you won’t incorrectly tell me that my soulmates will break my heart.”

He clicked off the phone and walked back into the dorm. 

“Just in time, love! We’re watching Big Hero 6.”

“I persuaded him.” said Logan, a small, smug, smile on his face, sitting primly at the edge of the couch.

“Hey! I like it too! Now, are we all comfortable?”

“Hang on.” Virgil said softly. “I wanna go put comfy clothes on.”

He disappeared into the room that he and Patton shared, and came back out a few minutes later in...

“Oh my gosh! Virgil, is that a bat onesie?”

Virgil nodded, his face red as a tomato, and spun around so they could see the little wings popping out of the back. 

“I have one like that!”

Roman ran into his room too, and Patton said, “Why don’t we all get ours on?”

Logan smiled sadly. “I’m afraid I no longer own a onesie, Patton.”

“That’s what you think!”

Patton opened a drawer in his room and pulled out the onesie that they had bought for him. “Here. Put it on!”

When they all put on their outfits, Roman twirled around, showing off his white and gold dragon onesie, before collapsing on the couch. 

Just before Roman unpaused the movie, Virgil said, “Can I talk to you guys about something?”

They all nodded. 

“What would you do if I- well, uh, would it be okay- um, never mind. It’s not really important anyway.”

Roman started the movie, but Patton couldn’t help worrying at his sleeves. 

What was wrong with Virgil?

  
Patton slid out of his dorm bed, yawning. His tired eyes briefly registered the fact that Virgil’s bed was empty, but he didn’t think much of it. He grabbed his cup off the nightstand, heading for the bathroom to go and fill it. 

Then he saw Virgil. He was standing in the middle of the common room, fumbling with a pair of scissors. 

“Virge! Sweetie, what are you doing?” 

Virgil jumped and looked up. “I’m going home. “ he said almost angrily. “I don’t belong here. I don’t deserve any of you. So I’m leaving.”

“Virgil, why wouldn’t you talk about this with us? Did...did we do something wrong?”

“I tried to talk about it earlier, but I freaked out and couldn’t do it. I had a note, but you didn’t do anything wrong. I just can’t stay.”

Patton felt numb. Was he just supposed to let Virgil go? “Please don’t go, I don’t know what we’ll do without you.”

“You’ll do fine. I don’t think it matters whether I stay or go.”

“Of course it does!” There was one last, desperate thing Patton could try. “I lo-“

“No you don’t!” he hissed. “And I...I don’t love you either. The only person who has ever loved me is Ella. Everyone else always leaves.”

He raised the scissors to his strings. 

Patton stayed still, knowing that no matter how hard Virgil tried, the strings wouldn’t-

_Cut. _

The strings fell lifeless to the floor, and Patton felt his heart break. 

He stood there stunned, as Virgil picked up his tiny bag and opened the door. 

“I’m sorry, Patton. It’s better this way. I’m just not good enough for all of you.”

The door shut. 

The cup slipped out of Patton’s hand and shattered on the floor, leaving shards of glass strewn about the tangled purple strings. 

_I guess Mom was right_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i know you all probably hate me, and i’m here to make it...worse. you’re probably thinking: “hey well that was horrible, but at least i only have to wait a week.” um, i have midterms. i’m sorry. i’ll be back in a month byeeeee
> 
> Dedications: sleepless-in-starbucks, triple kiss anon, rainbow anon, Da_Useless_Queer, extravagant bi, artsy mom friend, and lia’s small army of anons


	19. Chapter 16 1/2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> a little remile ficlet because i’m stressed about midterms and writing calms me down!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: remile, string cutting mention

Remy and Emile had been friends for most of their lives. Emile’s family moved into the house next to Remy’s when they were both two, and they became fast friends. And when Emile found out about soulmates, the first thing he did was come running to Remy.

“Sadie told me about soulmates!” The two seventh-graders were hidden underneath the rock wall on the playground, whispering excitedly. Parents typically told kids ‘we’ll tell you when you’re older’ and thus, it was left for the kids to find out by themselves. “Her older sister already has a string, so Sadie knows all about it.”  
  
Remy leaned closer, enthralled by this new information. “What did she say?”  
  
“She said that soulmates only come when both of them wish for it.”

“Can we wish for it?”  
  
Emile hesitated for a second, then broke into a big, toothy smile. “Okay!”  
  
Remy counted down. “Five, four, three, two, one!”  
  
They closed their eyes and wished simultaneously.  
  
_I wish I had a soulmate._  
  
Remy peeked one eye open at Emile, who still had his eyes squeezed shut.  
  
Then, he looked down at his right pinkie. A cool indigo string was forming, weaving itself around and around a single pink thread.  
  
The young boy gasped loudly, saying, “Emile, Emile, look!”  
  
Emile opened his eyes and looked down at Remy’s finger, then at his own, where the mirror image was threading itself together, leaving a big coil of string attaching them lying at their feet.  
  
They looked in amazement at each other, then Emile scooped up the big heap of threads and they ran out to go show their teachers.  
  
  
No one else in their grade had strings yet, and all of Sadie’s popularity from her older sister got shifted to the newly found soulmates.  
  
Of course, there were the people who didn’t believe them. Anyone who wasn’t trusted by either soulmate couldn’t see the strings. But neither boy let that upset them. They resolved to just go on being best friends until they got old enough for whatever it was soulmates did.  
  
And they sat together on the bus ride home, giggling and quietly acting out what they thought their parents’ reactions would be.  
  
Then they got off the bus.  
  
As the two ran to their separate front doors, the string suddenly stopped moving, jolting both of them to a halt on their sidewalks. Emile tugged a bit, but it wouldn’t stretch.  
  
Remy came over, looking confused. “Why is it so short?”  
  
“I don’t know. Maybe all of them are like that?”  
  
Emile took Remy’s tiny hand and opened the door, calling, “Mom?”  
  
Mrs. Picani poked her head out of her office, “What’s up, hon? Oh, hey, Remy.”  
  
In response, Emile gestured to the bundle of string wadded up behind him, then held up his and Remy’s hands.  
  
“Oh! You two got your strings! Why do you look so concerned?”  
  
They took her out into the yard and spread out, showing the forty-foot range of the string that was supposed to stretch infinitely.  
  
And so it happened, the parents all had a meeting at Remy’s house to discuss what to do.  
  
Remy’s father suggested that the two of them switch houses every other night, but none of the parents wanted to only see their child every other day, so that idea was scrapped.  
  
It only took one thought, and they were stumped. With a heartbroken face, Emile’s dad suggested cutting off their strings. He knew it could happen, he was a doctor, after all. But one look at the two boys, who clutched each other’s hands fearfully, that idea was shot down too.  
  
It was getting late and there was still nowhere for them to go until Remy’s dad looked out the window and spotted the tent sitting in their yard.  
  
He asked the two if they would be okay sleeping outside for the warmer months. “We can put a heater out and everything! It’ll be really cozy!”  
  
As Emile and Remy spread out their sleeping bags in the softly lit, lime green tent, Remy said quietly, “Emile?”  
  
“Yeah?”  
  
“I’m glad you’re my soulmate.”  
  
“Me too.”  
  
They clicked off the light and listened to the crickets chirping in the dark night, and Emile took Remy’s hand.

They fell asleep with small smiles on their faces.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i’ll be back with the actual story next week!
> 
> Dedications: sleepless-in-starbucks, triple kiss anon, rainbow anon, Da_Useless_Queer, extravagant bi, artsy mom friend, and lia’s small army of anons


	20. Chapter 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I'm a bit rusty, so bear with me as i get back into practice

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: fighting, yelling

It had been half an hour.

Half an hour since Virgil left. Half an hour since a piece of their lives had broken. Half an hour since Patton’s heart had cracked in two.

Roman and Logan woke up to find Patton standing amongst all the debris, staring silently at the door.

He couldn’t even cry.

Logan had slid on a pair of shoes and, stepping carefully around the glass, scooped Patton up, just as he had done so long ago at the hotel.

Gently, he laid Patton on the couch as Roman asked quietly, “What happened?”

Patton had opened his mouth to answer, but only a small whimper came out. He shook his head.

Logan made a quiet noise of surprise behind them, accompanied by the crinkle of paper. Soft footfalls made their way back over, and Logan handed a note to Roman, who sunk into the cushions.

Patton pulled himself closer to Roman, leaning against Roman’s shoulder as he read the note aloud.

_Dear Roman, Patton, and Logan,_

_I’m so sorry. I couldn’t stay. I just didn’t want to feel the hurt when you guys leave me. My sister left her soulmate, and my father left us, and all my friends left. It’s a pattern in my life, and I guess I wanted to cut ties first. I’m better off on my own, anyway. I might go back to Ella, I don’t know. Please don’t worry about me. I know you guys will be better off without me._

_Thank you for everything._

_From Virgil_

Roman set the paper down as Patton whispered, “This is all my fault.”

“No, Pat, it’s not. There was nothing you could have done.”

Logan sat down on the couch as well and said, quietly, “Well, I don’t think that’s entirely true. “

Patton buried his face into the couch as Roman replied harshly, “What do you mean? Of course Patton couldn’t do anything!”

Logan – _dear, sweet, beautiful Logan, please be quiet_ – continued. “Patton could have done a number of things to get Virgil to stay. For example –“

Roman cut over top of him, and Patton just wished he could curl into a ball and disappear. “You don’t understand! Patton would have only made a bad situation worse by - “

“He could have showed Virgil how much he would lose by leaving. He could have convinced Virgil to stay, at least until morning. He could have woken us up and had us help. He could have – “

“ENOUGH!”

Patton wasn’t sure where the voice had come from, but by both Roman and Logan’s shocked faces, it slowly dawned on him that that was him.

“Logan. I know I messed up. You don’t have to…you don’t have to tell me anymore. I know this is my fault. I know I did this. Please just stop.”

He headed for what was now his solitary dorm room, only just remembering to watch for the glass.

Patton laid on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. Could he call Virgil? No, Virgil probably didn’t want to talk to him directly. Maybe…a text?

He turned over and snagged his phone, unplugging it and sliding it off the desk. His finger smushed the home button, powering up the device. The time read 2:52, and Patton punched in his passcode, trying not to think too hard about what he had done.

Slowly, he typed out a message to his lost soulmate.

_Dear Virgil,_

_I’m so so sorry._

_This is all my fault. If I hadn’t gotten you all together, nothing would be wrong. You’d be back with Ella, where you wanted._

_Anyway, I’m sorry I did this. I wish you didn’t want to leave, but if you ever want to come back, we’d welcome you back with open arms._

_Love, Patton._

He thought for a moment, then deleted the ‘Love’, putting a small dash in its place.

One touch, and the message had sent. Tiny letters underneath read ‘Delivered’ and Patton waited for a few minutes, hoping it’d change to ‘Read’.

It didn’t.

A small knock came at the door, and Patton clicked his phone off. “Come in,” he called, his voice wavering.

Logan and Roman entered, both clutching small objects. Hugged tight to Roman’s chest was Mr. Cuddles, and Patton sadly smiled.

His smile dissolved when he looked at Logan’s item.

A small yarn ball of purple strings was clasped between Logan’s hands, and he handed it to Patton without looking up. 

Staring in horror at the strings that now lay tangled in his lap, he traced his finger over the light blue - threaded string that wound its way around the sphere. “I apologize, Patton. I was out of order. I was pushing my agenda onto you, blaming you for things that weren’t your fault, and acting awful. I – “ 

He stopped, trepidation crossing his face. “Oh my god.”

“W-what?” Roman asked, moving to grab his hand, but then thought better of it. Instead he took a seat next to Patton on the bed.

“I’m turning into my mother.”

Roman looked confused, but Patton immediately knew what he meant. And he hated it. “No, Logan, you’re not. I promise. Nobody thinks that.” 

Logan sighed, sitting down heavily on the mattress. 

Then he turned and hugged the other two, enveloping them in a warm embrace. Roman put his arms around them as well, and Patton allowed himself to smile. 

With the ball of purple string sitting in Patton’s hand, it was almost like they were all together again. 

Almost. 

Roman led them back into the common area, suggesting they watch a movie to take their mind off of things. The glass was all cleaned up, and Patton took a seat on the couch, refusing to let go of the strings. 

The TV’s screen clicked on, flashing just as a commercial was ending and a news report began. The dark room was suddenly filled with flashing lights, as EMTs and ambulances covered the screen. 

A reporter began talking, but Patton wasn’t listening to her. Because behind her, a body got loaded into an ambulance and whisked away. 

A body wearing a purple hoodie. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dedications: sleepless-in-starbucks, triple kiss anon, rainbow anon, Da_Useless_Queer, extravagant bi, artsy mom friend, DavidTheTraveler and lia’s small army of anons


	21. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> i do think it’s strange how nobody said anything about whose pov came next

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: knife

Sneakers pounded down the sidewalk, weaving around the few lazy, sluggish pedestrians.

Tears were flying down Virgil’s face as he ran.

After he had gotten far enough away, he slowed to a shuddering, tearful walk, keeping his sobs silent so that he didn’t attract attention from passersby.

Looking around, he could barely see his surroundings through his blurry vision, but nothing looked familiar. 

Wiping his eyes, he looked around, focusing on the glowing signs advertising a twenty-four-hour shop.

Virgil wandered into the convenience store, squinting against the florescent lighting. Ducking his head, trying to hide the redness of his eyes from the few patrons in the store as well.

He grabbed a basket, berating himself for being so cowardly as to leave. The instant he had closed the door, he had regretted it.

Tears slid down his face again as he remembered Patton’s heartbroken face as Virgil’s strings hit the ground.

He placed a toothbrush and a tube of toothpaste into his basket, wiping his eyes with his sweatshirt sleeve.

He thought of Roman and Logan’s faces when they found out.

A charging cord hit the plastic bottom of his basket next, it never hurt to have a second one.

_What would they do?_

He dodged around a man in dark clothing to grab some chips, muttering a hushed apology, and his heart sank even further when he realized he had left his bat onesie on the bed.

Virgil had folded it and everything, in order to take it with him. A way to remember his soulmates, that he would probably never see again.

To them it must look like a sign of rejection.

The cashier scanned his items, casting a weird look at his right pinkie.

_Could they see it?_

Virgil brushed off the question. Of course they couldn’t see it. He didn’t trust this cashier, and there was no reason that the string would appear to a stranger.

Unless…?

Virgil shook off the thought and left the store, hiding his tear-streaked face with his hood.

The cold night air slashed his face and chilled his hands, blowing through the frayed threads still hanging on to his pinkie.

He pulled out his phone, hoping Ella wouldn’t be too mad at getting a call in the middle of the night.

The little clock read 2:47am, and there were no new notifications. _Just as I thought,_ he said to himself. _They don’t want to talk to me._

He dialed Ella’s number, listening to the dialtone ring.

“Hello?”

Ella’s voice was groggy and exhausted, but welcome, and Virgil felt a smile spread across his face for the first time in hours. “Hi, Ella.”

“Vee? Hi! What-what’s wrong?”

His voice was shaky, and he could barely keep himself from sobbing as he said, “I think I wanna come home.”

“Why? Did they do something? If they hurt you, just let me know. I will come down and fight them.”

“No, Ella, they didn’t do anything like that. I just didn’t want them to leave me, like-like Dad did.”

He heard Ella’s sharp intake of breath on the other end of the line, and knew he had screwed up. They never mentioned their father.

“Virgil. Can you go back to bed? I can’t leave right now, but if you give me a few days, I’ll-“

“No, it’s okay. I’m on my way over there. I’ve got a plan. I’ll take buses home.”

“Okay…Just, be safe, and let me know if you change your mind, okay?”

“Okay. Love you Ella.”

“Love you Virgil.”

She hung up and he moved to turn off his phone, but then his eyes caught on his lock screen. A group photo Patton had taken the day they moved in, bright smile flashing. Roman’s confident grin and Logan’s smile were framed on the screen as well.

And sandwiched between them all was Virgil, looking happier then ever.

Virgil’s head snapped up. He wanted to be with them. No, he needed to be with them. He packed his phone back into his pocket and turned, poised to run.

Except he never even started.

A man in dark clothes was standing there, towering above him. A metallic glint drew Virgil’s eyes to his left hand, where a knife reflected the few streetlights shining above them. 

He felt his phone buzz against his side. 

A text. 

Probably the last one he would ever get.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dedications: sleepless-in-starbucks, triple kiss anon, rainbow anon, Da_Useless_Queer, extravagant bi, artsy mom friend, DavidTheTraveler and lia’s small army of anons


	22. Chapter 19: A Different Perspective

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It may be short, but I think it makes its point pretty well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: blood, knife, Deceit, emergency services

Dee was on his way home, from his job as a night guard at a bank. The street was dark and quiet, save for the whimpering of stray dogs ahead. 

Or was it stray dogs? 

As he got closer, Dee noticed that the soft sounds of pain seemed strangely human. 

He turned a corner, and then he saw it.

A young adult, lying in the light of a single street lamp, alone on the side walk. 

Normally, Dee would just assume it was a drunk homeless person, and would try to help them, but the small moans sounded serious. 

Dee rushed up. To his surprise, they were conscious. Their patched hoodie was slightly open at the front, revealing a sliver of a white shirt stained with... red.

“Are you alright?” Dee was shocked. Whoever they were, they were clearly injured badly. 

They nodded, just a small shift in their head. 

“May I take a look?” 

The person groaned in pain, but nodded again, and Dee opened the torn sweatshirt with trembling fingers.

It was worse that he had thought. The hilt of a knife stuck up and out of the right side of the person’s chest. 

Dee fumbled for his phone. 

“Hello? 911?” He looked down at the body. “I found a person lying in the street, they-they have a knife in their chest.” 

He lowered the phone. “The ambulance will be here in two minutes. Just hold on.” 

Dee scanned the person, hoping that there wasn’t any other injuries. 

Then he noticed the strings. 

Three frayed loops were attached to the pinkie still, almost as if they were real. 

But they couldn’t be. Dee wouldn’t be able to see them if they were real soulmate strings. 

“How did this happen?” asked Dee, hoping to keep them conscious. “Can you tell me who did this?”

“It-it was an accident. I’m sure that they didn’t mean to h-hurt me, but I fought, and I f-fell on the knife...” They trailed off, gasping for air like they were drowning.

Dee tried not to think about how frantically this person’s breathing was. _They might have punctured a lung! _

“Can you tell me something about yourself? Is there anyone else you want me to call? Your family...friends....soulmates?” 

The person caught on to Dee’s wrist, weakly tugging him closer. 

“I’m Virgil. Please, I need you to tell my soulmates that I love them. I never got to. Please.” 

Dee nodded, almost crying. “Can you tell me their names?”

“P-patton Moratile, Logan Logiciel, an-and-“ Virgil coughed up a splatter of red, gasping for breath. “Roman Prity. I’m begging you, they need to know that I love them, especially if I don’t make it.”

The screams of ambulances came rushing around the corner, along with police cars and news trucks. 

The journalists set up in front of him, and started filming. EMTs picked up Virgil and loaded them into the ambulance. 

The journalist shoved a microphone in his face. “Do you know anything about this?”

“N-no,” Dee stammered, hoping that it didn’t make him look suspicious. “I was walking back from work, and I- actually, I really am not comfortable saying things on live television. But I do want to say, Virgil’s soulmates? Please call me, Virgil told me something to tell you.” 

Dee gave his phone number to the reporter, then turned on his heel and hurried away, hoping that nobody noticed the tears forming in his eyes. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this has been referred to as “the secret chapter” for months, and basically all i said today was “today’s the day”
> 
> Dedications: sleepless-in-starbucks, triple kiss anon, rainbow anon, Da_Useless_Queer, extravagant bi, artsy mom friend, DavidTheTraveler and lia’s small army of anons


	23. Chapter 20

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I promise, we’re almost done with the Angst Period.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: blood mention, knife mention, deceit, hospital, ambulance

The boys sat stunned as they watched the muted TV, Patton staring at the person lying on the gurney, trying to see if it really was their Virgil.

_No_, Patton corrected himself. _He isn’t yours anymore_.

One of the EMTs moved to the side, and Patton finally got a glimpse of the body’s right hand.

The one with three frayed purple strings still tied to the pinkie.

The ambulance doors shut behind Virgil, and a new face appeared on the screen.

Logan fumbled for the remote, pressing the Volume Up button as the person spoke.

“…Virgil’s soulmates?”

They all let out an audible gasp, almost missing what came next.

“Please call me, Virgil told me something to tell you.”

A phone number rolled across the bottom of the screen, and Roman snapped a picture of it.

He dialed the number, turning the phone on speaker and setting it on the coffee table, as the dial tone rang low and soothing.

Patton was anything but soothed.

Virgil was out there, in a hospital, probably dying! They didn’t even get to say goodbye!

“Hello?”

Roman stammered, “H-hi. This is-this is Roman Prity, I’m one of-“

He was interrupted by quiet sobs from the other end of the line.

Patton said, in a voice so cracked that it sounded like a broken window, “What’s wrong?”

“I’m sorry. This is inconsiderate. My name is Dee. I found Virgil in the street. They were badly injured, so I called 911. Before the emergency services got there, they told me to tell you that-“

Dee cleared their throat, before continuing. “They told me to tell you that they love you.”

Patton let out a cry, burying his face into Roman’s shoulder.

Logan’s voice was calm, but his face showed barely restrained panic as he said, “Thank you, Dee. I would like to ask you one more thing. Do you know which hospital Virgil was taken to?”

“Y-yes. Olive Branch.”

They thanked Dee and hung up, all at once standing and hurrying out of their dorm.

Patton locked the dorm door behind them, clutching the ball of purple strings close to his chest.

He followed Lo outside and found Roman waiting by the car, anxiously fiddling with the keys. Logan gently took them from him and unlocked the car, sliding into the driver’s seat and slamming the door shut, turning the key.

Roman got in on the other side, and Patton curled up in the back, hugging his knees, the little ball of purple yarn next to him.

The traffic was sparse this early in the morning, but Patton barely noticed. He was too focused on the two men in front of him. Roman tapped his fingers quietly on the windowsill and worried his sleeves. And Logan…

Logan’s hands were gripping the steering wheel so tightly, Patton thought he might break it. His face was lined with worry. And there was…there was… There was a tear rolling down Logan’s cheek.

Patton put his head on his knees and cried quietly.

This was all his fault. If he had only tried harder. Patton couldn’t blame anyone else. He knew, he knew this was all his fault. Why were the others with him? They wouldn’t be soon enough, that was for sure.

Sobs wracked his frame and tears stained his shirt, as he cried hard enough to shake the earth.

The lady at the reception desk was sympathetic, but firm. “He is in emergency care right now, but you are welcome to wait.”

Patton nodded mutely and moved toward a set of empty chairs, but Roman took his hand gently. “How long will it take?”

She consulted her computer. “Around eleven hours, to clean up infections and remove the knife.”

Logan spoke up for the first time in half an hour. “The-the knife?”

“Yes, Virgil Anzine was stabbed in the chest with a four inch knife. It hit between two of his ribs, and he very nearly missed puncturing a lung.”

With a look of genuine concern on her face, she continued. “I’m sorry. If you want to give your phone number, we can notify you when he’s ready to receive visitors.”

Logan agreed.

The ride back to SUUS was long and silent. 

Patton sat on Virgil’s bed, too shocked to think. 

_The hospital was taking care of him, right? _

He put his hand down on the blankets - and felt a fuzzy, familiar texture. 

Virgil’s bat onesie. 

Patton hugged it to his chest, crawling into his own bed and closing his eyes.

_Everything will be better in the morning_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dedications: sleepless-in-starbucks, triple kiss anon, rainbow anon, Da_Useless_Queer, extravagant bi, artsy mom friend, DavidTheTraveler and lia’s small army of anons


	24. Chapter 21

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ok i wasn’t able to write the valentine chapter, so have this really long chapter instead(i’ve been writing for 7 hours)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: abuse, blood, injury, knives, drowning

Everything was not better in the morning.

Patton woke to a buzzing coming from his desk.

He groggily disentangled himself from his blankets, pulling the bat onesie closer to his chest as he picked up the phone.

“Hello?”

His voice was raw and scratchy, but Patton couldn’t find it in himself to care.

“Patton, sweetie? How are you? I saw on the news that your soulmate went to the hospital.”

“Mom, I really don’t want to talk to you right now.” His voice was wavering and Patton willed himself not to cry.

“Please, Patton, you have to know that I was right.”

Patton hung up on her without another word.

Hot tears dripped down his face, landing on Virgil’s onesie.

He didn’t care.

He didn’t care much about anything right now.

He just wanted everything to go back to normal.

Murmurs came from the other room, and Patton padded out, leaving the bat onesie lying on the bed.

“Good morning, Patton,” said Logan robotically, hanging up his phone.

He passed Patton a large to-go box with the name of a local diner printed on the top.

Patton looked up at Logan. “How…?”

“Oh, I couldn’t sleep. I assumed you and Roman would want something to eat.”

Patton glanced at the clock. 7:32 am. “No, I meant…how are you so calm?”

For a moment, worry and fear flashed through Logan’s eyes. “I…have found…that working helps distract me.”

He sat heavily onto the couch. Patton felt, for the first time in hours, a spark of emotion flare inside his chest.

And it _hurt_.

Pushing himself out of his chair, he joined his soulmate on the couch, letting his hand rest beside Logan. “Logan, please. You really should talk about your feelings, instead of pushing them down.”

For a moment, it looked like Logan was going to say something, but he placed his hand over Patton’s and shook his head.

After a moment, he pulled away, standing up. “Well, I should probably go get Roman.”

“He’s awake?”

“Yes, he won’t talk to me, but he’s awake.”

They opened the door to the dark room. The glow of Roman’s phone was shockingly bright, and Patton said quietly, “Hi.”

Roman gasped, and the phone fell out of his hands and onto his face.

Patton couldn’t help it. He started to laugh.

“It’s not that funny,” said Roman. But he was laughing too.

They giggled helplessly for a while, and just as it seemed to pass, Logan joined in, grinning in a way that made Patton giddy.

Life goes on.

Patton took a seat and opened up the food Logan had gotten him. He felt all bouncy inside.

That feeling quickly dissipated when his phone, lying on the table, began ringing.

He went to pick it up, but Logan grabbed it first.

“Oh, I apologize, Patton. I thought this was mine.” He handed it back, but his apologetic face turned to one of confusion. “Why was your mother calling you?”

Roman slammed down his plastic fork. “What?”

“No, I’m okay. Eat your waffles.”

Patton dug into his chocolate chip pancakes, but he was still aware of Logan and Roman watching him.

“Guys, I’m fine. I didn’t answer.”

“Has she been calling you this whole time? Trying to get you to go back? …Threatening you?”

“No!” Patton was shocked. “She’s only called me twice, Logan, last night and this morning. And if she threatened me, I would _tell_ you.”

“Oh.” Logan looked…ashamed?

Before Patton could process it, Roman changed the subject, blurting out something about the new bookstore in town. 

And so, they wasted the day away playing video games and watching movies, making it through Sunday together. 

When 2:00 pm rolled around, they all did an awful job of pretending they weren’t waiting for Logan’s phone to ring, telling them they could go visit Virgil. 

It never came. 

Patton crawled into bed late at night, gathering strength from Roman and Logan’s hugs goodnight, and from Virgil’s onesie, which he gripped tightly.

_ Goodnight, Virgil. _

_Please be okay._

_Alone in a dark room Patton sat, staring at a white door. For what felt like hours, he waited, the three strings attached to his hand swaying as if in a slight breeze. _

_More time ticked by, and Patton grew frantic. Virgil was behind that door, he knew it! Why wouldn’t the door open?_

_Patton stood, arm outstretched to try the door himself, when the purple string wrapped itself around his arms and legs, fastening him to the floor._

_Pulling at the string, he was shocked to see the deep blue string begin to grow and spread across the floor, lapping against his legs like an ocean wave. _

_And it started to rise._

_The doorknob was almost under, now, and Patton knew that if it went under, he couldn’t go through it. _

_He would never see Virgil again. _

_Mustering all his strength, Patton tugged on the anchors holding him down, pulling with every bit of energy. _

_Then a bolt of pain shot through his chest. _

_Patton grasped his ribs, trying not to fall over into the unforgiving blue. _

_When he next looked up, the glittering gold doorknob was gone. _

_As the ‘water’ rose to Patton’s chest, he gazed in despair at the door, opening his mouth to scream for Virgil._

_“Vir-_

_Red threads poured out instead, choking out Patton’s voice and adding to the suffocating embrace of the yarn. _

_And the string swallowed him. _

_Then it was just Patton, in a sea of thoughts and threads. _

Patton woke Monday morning to a note from Roman and Logan. 

_Hi Patton._

_We had to go to class. We tried to wake you up, but you seemed so tired, so we decided to let you rest._

Logan’s neat script was dragged off the edge of the page here, replaced by Roman’s loopy print. 

_How come you didn’t tell us about Virgil’s onesie? _

Patton could imagine Logan wrenching the pen out of Roman’s hand. 

_Ignore that, please. We’ll see you at lunch. _

It was signed with both of their initials. 

Patton stared at the note, then made up his mind. 

He wasn’t going to class today.

Telling the headmaster was easy. Mr. Sanders wished his condolences and told Patton to let him know if there was anything he could do to help. 

Patton thanked him and left the office.

Telling Miss Samantha was much harder. 

He got to her class just as it ended, forcing Patton to wait for the sea of students to flow out. 

Poking his head into the classroom, he called, “Hi?” 

“Oh, hi!” Miss Emily was sitting on a desk, playing on her phone. “Sam’s in the library. She’ll be back any-“

The door opened behind him. 

“Emily, have you seen my – “ 

Samantha stopped short when she saw Patton. “Oh, hey.” She thought for a second. “You’re Virgil’s soulmate!” 

“Y-yeah.” 

Samantha looked around the room. “So where’s Virgil? Or did you just come by yourself?” 

“Well, that-that’s what I wanted to talk to you about. Virgil is…he’s in the hospital.” 

Samantha gasped, and Emily slid off the desk, wrapping her arms around Samantha. 

“He- got stabbed.” Patton’s voice broke at the end, and his eyes went blurry. 

Samantha was too shocked to speak, but Emily asked, “How?” 

“We were fighting, and he was running away, and he cut his strings, and I don’t really know what happened, but he h-had a knife in his chest-“ 

“No!” 

Emily and Patton looked at Samantha. 

“This is a nice joke idea, but it’s not funny.” 

“Miss Samantha, it isn’t a joke-“ 

She talked over him loudly. “I don’t think you would understand, but I was afraid every day that I would come home from work and their father would be back. I was scared that one day Virgil would get so injured that I wouldn’t be able to help him. Do you know how many wounds I bandaged before his father left?” 

Emily placed a hand on Samantha’s arm. “Sam, please,” 

“No! I don’t want to think about this lie!” 

Patton pulled the ball of purple strings out of his bag, offering it to Samantha. 

Gently, Samantha took it from Patton’s hands. “So it’s true then.” 

Patton nodded, not daring to look her in the eyes. 

Then she began to laugh bitterly. 

“Well, whatever you say about Virgil, that boy sure did know how to run away from his problems.” 

Emily lightly smacked her on the shoulder, and Patton asked, “What?” 

“Every time he had a bad day at school, I’d always see him sitting on the roof. That was my cue to bring over whatever snacks I had on hand.” 

Patton felt awful for dropping this burden on the poor teacher. 

“Don’t worry, kid. If there was something that I loved about Virgil, it was his ability to bounce back.”

Patton spent the rest of the day staring into his phone, trying to work up the courage to call Ella. 

_She needs to know! _

_But how can I do this to her?_

Feeling like a horrible person, he pushed it aside and settled down on the couch, hugging his knees to his chest. 

Roman sat down next to him, face unusually solemn. 

“Patton, I wanted to talk to you about the- “ 

A knock came at the door. 

Logan put down his book and walked over, turning the lock and opening the door. 

“Hi, Logan!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> you’d think that if i only slept an hour last night, i’d have it done earlier 
> 
> Dedications: sleepless-in-starbucks, triple kiss anon, rainbow anon, Da_Useless_Queer, extravagant bi, artsy mom friend, DavidTheTraveler and lia’s small army of anons


	25. Chapter 22

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some unexpected visitors...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: Remus mention, hospital, knife

The two Prity mothers bustled past Logan, both holding large bags.

“Hey, Patton!” Christine called, setting the bags down on the table.

Rosie Mae put her bags down too, walking across the room to where Roman and Patton were sitting. “Roman, I’m sorry for barging in on you all like this, but you didn’t answer any of my calls yesterday, and I got worried, especially when I saw the news–“

Christine butted in. “Well, in any case, we’ll be staying in the city for today and tomorrow, to help you three out.”

“Wait, where’s Katie and Jack? Don’t they have to go to school?”

“They’re staying with Remus. He promised to take care of them.”

From where he was standing, Logan could see Roman raise a skeptical eyebrow.

“Yeah, maybe that wasn’t the best idea,” Christine said.

Roman sighed. “It’s fine, Mama. What’s in the bags?”

“Your mom assumed that you guys hadn’t been eating well since… well, we brought some home cooked food.”

Logan expected to hear complaints from Roman and Patton about how they had been eating, but nothing came.

Logan mentally ticked backwards on his own meal schedule._ I had lunch… yesterday?_

Aside from occasional picking at snacks, Logan hadn’t had anything to eat in about 29 hours.

That probably wasn’t good.

The five of them sat down at the table, Rosie Mae uncovering a dish of cooked chicken.

Serving out the meal, Rosie Mae said, “So, have you heard anything from the hospital?”

Christine shot her wife a warning look, which Rosie Mae promptly ignored.

Patton said in a small voice. “We haven’t heard anything. Virgil was supposed to be out of surgery yesterday, but…”

“Oh.”

Roman entered the conversation, smiling a little too widely to be real. “This dinner is delicious. Thanks, Mom. Thank you, Mama.”

“You’re welcome, Roman. We’ll leave the leftovers here for you three.”

Logan almost raised his hand, but then remembered. “Mrs. Prity, that’s all too kind, but we don’t have anywhere to store them.”

“Oh, that’s where you’re wrong, Logan. I found an old mini-fridge in the basement that still works. We brought it here for you guys to use. And I’ve told you to call me Rosie Mae.”

The rest of the evening passed in a blur, filled with cleaning up the dorm and little conversations, all avoiding the enormous elephant in the room.

Tuesday whirled by just as fast, and Logan, Roman, and Patton showed the two Pritys around the campus whenever they were out of classes.

But Wednesday morning, when Roman’s parents had gone home, Logan and Roman walked out of their room to see Patton curled up on the couch.

“Patton? What’s wrong?”

“I feel awful!”

Logan flinched a little, but took Patton by the arm.

”What happened?” Roman asked, sitting down on the couch next to Patton.

“I haven’t told Ella what happened! And it’s been days! What do I do? I’ve already sprung this on Miss Samantha, and she got so upset! What-what if Ella gets upset with us?”

Logan thought. “The only way to make this worse is to hold off on telling her.”

He clicked Ella’s name in his contacts, letting the dial tone ring.

“Logan!!”

“Patton, it has to be done. I would’ve helped you sooner if you had let me know what you were struggling with.”

The line clicked.

“Hello? Virgil?”

“No, Ella, sorry. This is Logan, Roman, and Patton.”

“Oh, hi guys. Do you know where Virgil is? He called me Saturday night, telling me that he was coming home, but he still hasn’t shown up. I told him to call me if he changed his mind. Maybe he forgot?”

“He’s in the hospital.” Patton whispered, just loud enough for Logan to hear.

“He’s- what?”

“He got injured in a fight, according to the person who found him, and he had a k-knife in his side…” 

Ella’s line was silent for a moment. Then, “Is he okay? Have you seen him?” 

“No! He was supposed to be out of surgery on Sunday! The hospital promised to call us if something happened, but they haven’t yet, and I’m not sure if that’s a good or bad thing-“ Roman shut his mouth, sinking back into the couch. 

“Do-do they know who did it?” 

“No, they have no clue. Maybe Virgil can say who…” 

Logan’s mind was racing, connecting little dots as Patton continued talking. Virgil was in the hospital. Logan’s mom had threatened to hurt his soulmates, if Logan blocked her. Logan had blocked her. 

Patton hung up the phone and buried his face in his hands, his small body racked with sobs. 

“This is all my fault.” Logan whispered under his breath. 

Patton’s tear-streaked face turned to him. “What?” 

“I have a confession to make.” He pulled out his phone with trembling fingers. “My parents…they’ve been calling me since I left. They threatened to hurt you if I blocked their numbers or ignored their calls. But I couldn’t handle it anymore, and finally I shut it off, and now… now…” 

His voice cracked into sobs, and Patton scooted a bit closer. “Lo, darling-“ 

Logan flinched. _My mother calls me ‘darling’. _

Oblivious, Patton continued. “-this isn’t your fault. That’s just…very bad timing, and Virgil will be okay.” The optimistic statement was marred by the tears rolling down Patton’s cheeks, but Logan wrapped his arms around him anyway. 

Patton murmured into Logan’s shoulder, “If anything, it’s my fault.”

Logan pulled away, shocked, as Roman seemed to finally awake from his mournful stupor. 

“Patton, it’s not your fault either. Like I said before, V-Virgil made up his mind and he was going. No matter what. I should have been there to protect him. I should have kept him safe.” 

He pulled himself closer to the other two, Logan reaching out and hugging Roman on the other side of him. 

“Roman, it is not your fault. You had no idea he was leaving. None of us knew this would happen. And though,” Logan swallowed fearfully, “though we don’t know what’ll happen, it isn’t your fault. Why are you so set on protecting us? Just because?” 

Tears started rolling down Roman’s face again, leaving tracks in his already ruined makeup. “Your families… aren’t the best. I wanted to protect you, so you never saw that side of humanity again. But I can’t even do that right, because you were being threatened by your parents, and Virgil – “ 

He let out a wail that wrenched Logan’s heart, bringing tears to his eyes. 

Patton took them both by the hand. “All we can do right now, guys, is wish, and wait, and hope.” 

So they did. 

Logan’s phone rang, startling the three of them out of their reverie. 

The call number was unknown, but Logan answered it anyway, hoping that it wasn’t his mother. 

“Hello, this is the Olive Branch Hospital. Is this Logan Logiciel?” 

“Yes.” Logan waited with bated breath. “Do you need information or something of that sort?” 

“Not quite. Virgil has asked to see you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> that was panic-inducing  
Dedications: sleepless-in-starbucks, triple kiss anon, rainbow anon, Da_Useless_Queer, extravagant bi, artsy mom friend, DavidTheTraveler and lia’s small army of anons


	26. Chapter 23

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> this is a Lot shorter then i wanted

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: injury, hospital

Patton didn’t hear what the person on the phone said, but when the look of pure shock crossed Logan’s face, he knew it must have been something bad.

“Okay. We’ll - we’ll be there soon.” Logan hung up the phone. “We have to leave.”

Roman looked concerned. “Logan, what’s up?”

“It’s Virgil.”

Nothing more was said about it. Patton slung his bag over his chest, worrying. Was this it? Did they have to go say goodbye?

Roman slid into the back of the car, passing the ball of strings up to Patton, who hastily stowed it in his bag before putting his hands on the wheel. Logan climbed into the passenger seat, looking anxious.

Traffic was awful, and Patton wanted nothing more then to be able to teleport to the hospital and see Virgil.

_What if we get there too late?_

“Logan?”

“Hmm? Oh, yes, Patton?”

“What’s wrong with Virgil?”

Logan seemed confused. “I…don’t understand. The wound?”

“No, did something else happen? Why did the hospital call? Did his injuries get worse?”

Logan blinked in bewilderment. “Oh! I apologize for making you worry. No, nothing is wrong with Virgil.”

“What? How come the hospital called us then?”

A real, genuine smile crossed Logan’s face. “Virgil asked us to visit.”

Roman and Patton gasped simultaneously.

“Really? Virgil’s okay?”

“According to the hospital, yes.”

“Why did you look so scared then?”

“Um…” Logan stalled for a second. “It’s nothing.”

They pulled into the parking lot, and turned off their car, walking quickly to the building doors through the cold morning air.

The reception desk had a different person there, and as Logan gave their names and who they were there to see, Patton found himself looking around the waiting room. Everything he didn’t see that night.

A nurse came to walk them to Virgil’s room, and Patton started to worry again. What if Virgil didn’t want to see them?

_No_, he told himself. _Virgil asked to see us. He does want to see us_.

The nurse opened the door for them, and Patton saw Virgil, looking small and scared, huddled up against the clean white sheets, staring off into space.

Patton found his voice. “Vir...gil?”

Virgil’s face turned towards them with wide eyes. “Guys?”

All of them crowding around his bed, Patton sheepishly asked, “Can we hug you?”

“Y-yes please. I can’t hug you back though, the doctor says I might rip the stitches.”

Patton wrapped his arms around Virgil, letting the warmth of his body convince him that, _yes, Virgil is okay, everything is fine, we’re together_.

Roman embraced Patton and Virgil, and Logan held them all close.

Tears were running down everyone’s face, and it took all of Patton’s strength to pull away, gazing at Virgil’s face in disbelief.

Semi – healed bruises and scabbed – over cuts were scattered around Virgil’s facial features. Some things were covered over with white bandages, and Patton didn’t want to know what was under those.

“I asked to see you every day, but the doctors wouldn’t let me! They said that I might injure myself if I overexerted. It took days to convince them that you guys weren’t the ones who…” He fiddled with the frayed strings on his pinkie. “Anyway, how is everything? How’s Ella? I couldn’t call her, the mugger took my phone. They took everything. And I was too nervous to ask for a phone here.”

Roman, ever reassuring, said. “It’s okay. We called her. She’s worried, especially because she didn’t know we got the call today, but we’ll call her. Do you want to call her now?”

“No. I’ll find a way to call her later.” Virgil closed his eyes and took a breath, then looked at Patton. “Patton, I’m really sorry. I didn’t know how to leave after telling you guys, so I just blurted it out to you and ran. My heart broke when I closed that door on you. I’m so sorry.”

Virgil placed his hand over Patton’s – then just as quickly yanked it back in shock as his fingers felt the fuzzy strings.

“You still have my – the purple string on your hand?”

Patton nodded, and Virgil looked around at the others. Roman held up his hand, and Logan placed his on the bed as well.

“Not only that…” Patton leaned down and opened his bag, pulling out the ball of violet string.

The ball rolled into Virgil’s lap.

Virgil’s fingers hovered over the yarn, as if he was afraid to touch it. His fingers traced the different colors through the purple.

He pushed it away mournfully, and Patton stuffed it back into his bag.

“I can’t believe that I could have been so…stupid! I feel so guilty.”

Logan cleared his throat. “Virgil, may I hold your hand?”

Virgil nodded. Logan rested his hand over top of Virgil, clasping it gently. “Please don’t blame yourself. I am a bit of a hypocrite saying that, but this was all an accident. All a misunderstanding. The only thing we want is for you to be happy. If that means you go away, then so be it. I’m sorry that you feel like you have to go. If you still wanted to leave-“

“No!” Virgil seemed shocked by how loud his voice was, but he took a deep breath and continued. “I don’t want to leave. I was being stupid, and there’s nothing that made me happier than being with you guys. I wish I had stayed before. I’m sorry.”

He raised his arms a little bit, and they all gathered around him again, grinning into the group hug, just like they had the first day they met.

_Hidden in Patton’s bag, lying by his chair, the ball of string glowed a deep, cool, blue, before flickering into darkness._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> what the fyuh?  
Dedications: sleepless-in-starbucks, triple kiss anon, rainbow anon, Da_Useless_Queer, extravagant bi, artsy mom friend, DavidTheTraveler and lia’s small army of anons


	27. Chapter 24

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> forgive me i thought this chapter was funny but it turns out i’m just really sick

Patton bounced the ball of from one hand to the other, procrastinating on his homework.

Was it just him, or did he feel a buzz whenever his hands touched the sphere?

Logan and Roman sat next to each other, Logan doing his homework, and Roman texting Virgil. Patton had left his phone with Virgil, so that he could call Ella whenever, or call them whenever.

However, it just seemed to be a meme-off at the moment.

Doodling a little star on the edge of his paper, he hummed a peppy tune, listening to Roman snicker.

_Once Virgil gets back, this will all be perfect._

The doctors told them that Virgil would stay a little over a month in the hospital, at the rate he was healing now. Apparently, that was really fast, but for Patton, it was still too long.

Patton shook off the thoughts of Virgil, and put pencil to paper, finally ready to do his work.

Then Logan’s phone began to ring.  
He drew it out of his pocket, and Patton saw the color drain from his face as he saw the caller ID.

Mother.

“Should I answer it?” Logan asked nervously.

“Yes!” Patton said angrily. “I want to give her a piece of my mind!”

“Wait.” Roman stopped them “If we’re actually going to answer, we need to be smart about this. Gimme a minute.”

He fiddled with his phone a bit, and Patton looked at Logan. “How did she even call you? I thought you blocked her.”

He looked away ashamedly. “I unblocked her when I thought she hurt Virgil. I – I didn’t know what else to do.”

“Got it!” Roman set his phone down on the table, open and recording on the Voice Memo app. “Call her back, Lo.”

“Alright.”

The dial tone rang for what seemed like ages.

“Hello, darling.” Mrs. Logiciel’s simpering voice floated through the speakers, and Patton shuddered. “I’m so glad you called back. You were on your last straw, and I thought I was going to have to come get you. Are you ready to come back? We’re waiting for you.”

Logan’s voice was melancholy and resigned, and it broke Patton’s heart. “Hello, Mother. May I ask you a question?”

His mom carried on, ignoring him. “Well, I’m happy that you haven’t made a habit of ignoring us. Please come back. We’ve missed you. Your teenage rebellion was fun while it lasted, wasn’t it? But it’s over now, and you have to start making healthy decisions for your future. No more running off with your so-called soulmates. You wouldn’t want anything to happen, would you?”

It took all of Patton’s self-control not to growl. He opened his mouth to confront her, but Logan was already yelling.

“I don’t think you understand how soulmates work! Just because you don’t have a string, doesn’t mean all soulmates aren’t real! And something already did happen! So, answer this: _Did you hurt Virgil?_” 

“Virgil? Who’s Virgil?”

“My soulmate.” Logan said through gritted teeth. “I blocked you, and hours later he was mugged and stabbed. Was it you?”

“No! I don’t agree with your foolish decision to leave, but I would never stab someone. That’s very illogical, given I may not be able to get away with it. It seems that spending time with your dimwit ‘soulmates’ is poisoning your mind. Why don’t you come back?”

“No thank you. I’ve got all the information I need. And, Mother?”

“Yes, darling?” Her voice was sickly sweet, and it made Patton want to gag.

“My so-called ‘dimwit’ soulmates had the brilliant idea to tape this conversation. If you contact us again, we’ll take the tape to the police. I’m sure they’ll enjoy a recording of you threatening us. Goodbye.”

Logan had a smug smile on his face as he clicked the End Call button.

The room was silent for a few minutes, then it erupted with cheers.

The yells quickly subsided into giggles, and the three of them collapsed onto the couch.

“Thank you, guys.” Logan said, giving them a fond smile.

And Patton thought that he couldn’t be more in love.

The next day was Sunday. Visiting Day!

Patton snagged Roman’s phone and texted Virgil.

_Hey Virgil, it’s Patton. We’re on our way. Do you want us to bring you anything?_

The response came back immediately, under Patton’s name.

**prince patton moratile**: yep could you bring me my folders?

Patton smiled.

_Ok. We’ve got a bunch of food here, do you want any of that_?

**prince patton moratile**: tbh i just want coffee but the doctors say no

Fingers flying across the screen, Patton messaged back: _Awwww, I’m sorry. We’ll bring you your homework tho_

**prince patton moratile**: yes this is just great

**prince patton moratile**: more homework and no coffee

Chuckling, Patton handed the phone back to Roman, snagging a green folder off Virgil’s desk.

One car drive, parking space, and elevator ride later, they were walking into the hospital.

As they passed through the waiting room, Patton spotted a familiar face.

“Ella?”

She turned. “Oh, hi guys! I take it you’re here to visit Virgil as well?”

Patton nodded. “Want us to take you there?”

“I was waiting for a nurse, but yeah! This is better anyway.”

They led Ella to room 410, and she turned, looking sheepish. “Would you guys mind waiting out here? I’m sure Virgil would be embarrassed if I started sobbing in front of you, and I remember that hospital rooms are really cramped. I won’t be long. I have to start driving home soon anyway. I just – “

“Ella. It’s fine. Go ahead.”

She gave them a grateful smile and walked inside, pulling out a little box as she went.

They waited for about 15 minutes, and Ella exited, tear-streaked but smiling.

Logan, Roman, and Patton went in.

Virgil was sitting up in bed, playing with a phone. When he saw them, he flashed a grin and put it down.

Patton immediately launched into what he was now privately calling “The Mrs. Logiciel Debacle”.

“… She’s such a… such a… I can’t even think of a word mean enough!” Patton concluded. “Sorry, Lo.”

“No, no, whatever word you choose, it is pretty much guaranteed to be worse. What’d Ella give you, Virge?”

“Oh!” Virgil picked up the phone he’d been playing with earlier. “She felt bad when I told her that I had been using your phone, Patton, and she managed to get a secondhand phone online. Mind if you give my number out? Like to Miss Samantha and Miss Emily?”

They all agreed, and Monday morning, Patton set out. He had only made it halfway across campus, however, when he heard people calling his name.

“Patton?”

He spun around. “Oh, hey Remy. Hi Emile.”

“Patton, we heard what happened to Virgil! Is he okay?” Remy asked, pushing his sunglasses to the top of his head.

“Well, he’s got a huge stab wound right through his torso, but he’s not dead, and he’ll be coming back to school in about a month. I’m actually on my way to pick up his homework now.”

“Okay. Are we allowed to go visit him?” Emile’s brows were furrowed, and he looked like he wanted to bring all the stuffed animals in the world to the hospital.

“If you want to!” Patton eyed the iced coffee in Remy’s hand. “Though maybe don’t bring any drinks in. He’s not allowed to have coffee.”

Remy looked like his world had just been shattered. Emile gave Patton an apologetic smile, and led his soulmate away.

Patton continued into the Art building, opening the now-familiar door to Miss Samantha’s classroom.

Without saying a word to him, Miss Samantha got up and walked around her desk.

Laying her hands on his shoulders, she said quietly, “Is Virgil ok?”

Patton backed up fast. “Yes, yes, he’s fine. I actually came to get his homework and to give you this.”

He held out a small slip of paper with Virgil’s new phone number on it.

“Virgil wanted me to give this to you. And Miss Emily too, if she wants it.”

Miss Samantha laughed. “Oh, I am not giving this to her. She’d spend all her time calling him. He’d never escape!”

She slipped it into her pocket, and Patton hurried out the door, beaming.

Things were finally looking up. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> my right brain: i have the best new idea!  
my left brain: great! finish pom(h)s first and you can do it  
my right brain: awww but i’m more interested in this!  
my left brain: you wanna get to chapter [REDACTED], don’t you?  
my right brain: yeahhhh  
my left brain: then write.
> 
> Dedications: sleepless-in-starbucks, triple kiss anon, rainbow anon, galaxy anon, Da_Useless_Queer, extravagant bi, artsy mom friend, DavidTheTraveler and lia’s small army of anons


	28. Chapter 25

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the entirety of this chapter is roman being very gay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: hospitals, and dee

For the third time that week (it was Monday), Roman led the other two into Virgil’s hospital room.

But this time, they had an extra visitor with them.

Dee walked over to Virgil’s bed, holding out a hand for him to shake.   
“Hello, Virgil. It’s nice to properly meet you.”

Virgil stared up at him with those big doe eyes – _beautiful eyes, he could stare at them for hours_ – and then, without warning, wrapped his arms around Dee’s middle.

“Thank you,” Virgil whispered, barely audible. “I didn’t want to die.”

Dee returned the hug, and Roman felt an arm rest against the small of his back.

Leaning into Logan, Roman smiled.

Not everything’s perfect yet, but it would be.

They were perfect

_We are perfect_.

Roman walked across the campus, earbuds in, on a video call with Virgil.

“…and the nurses told me that you guys have to start following the regular visiting Day schedule. They’ll probably tell you when you guys next show up.”

Eyes locked on Virgil, Roman asked, “What’s the visiting schedule?”

“Um, every Sunday, I think? The max time is like 8 hours.”

“What? I can’t do that! I need to see you every da-“

Roman slammed into a tree.

His phone went flying out of his hand, landing in the grass a few feet away. Grumbling, Roman stood up, brushing himself off and checking for scrapes.

When he retrieved his phone and stuck his earbuds back in, Virgil was laughing.

“It wasn’t that funny!” Roman said, trying his best not to smile at the adorable grin on Virgil’s face.

“I just saw you faceplant into a tree and then everything went dark. That was hilarious. I thought your phone died or something.”

“Still…” But he was laughing too.

“Where are you heading now?” Virgil asked, finally settling back down and wincing at the pain that Roman knew came from his still-healing injury.

“Lunch with Logan and Patton. Want us to bring you anything?”

Virgil said exasperatedly, “Yes, please! Normally I wouldn’t mind the hospital food, but there are only so many freakin’ Jell-O cups I can eat before I go insane.

Roman laughed. “Ok. We won’t bring you Jell-O.”

He said goodbye and hung up, heading for the small Italian restaurant where they had arranged to meet.

“Roman! Over here!” Patton waved from a small table, with a plate of breadsticks already set out.

Logan waved too, and Roman hurried over.

“Did you fall over?” Logan asked, giving him a once-over.

Roman blushed. “Maybe. How could you tell?”

“You’ve got grass stains everywhere.”

“Whatever.” Roman slung his bag onto the unused fourth chair, saying, “So Virgil told me that we have to move to only Sundays when we visit Virgil. Sucks, right?”

Patton and Logan exchanged upset glances.

“What?”

“We have a big English test next Monday, and we have to study. Do you want to visit Virge by yourself? Patton thought that we could just go on Monday after the test was over, but that may not happen.”

“Sure! I can go on my own. I’m sorry you guys have to study, but I have the perfect idea to do with Virgil!”

Roman threw the door open, letting his song flood into the room with him. “…Roman makes an entrance!”

Virgil picked up his book from where he had thrown it in surprise. “I can see that. What’s in the bag?”

Roman plunked the bag down on the lone chair sitting in the room. “I brought every single Disney movie I could check out from the campus library.”

“Ooh, which one are we gonna watch?”

“We have eight hours. I was thinking… all of them?”

From the bed and the chair, they watched as Mulan beat the Huns.

From the bed and the floor, they cheered as Peter Pan and Captain Hook fought on the Jolly Roger,

From the bed and the edge of the bed, they hummed along to Moana’s songs.

And if the nurses came in hours later to find them dozed off, cuddling in the bed as Belle and the Beast waltzed around the ballroom, well, who were they to wake the two up?

_Not-so far away, back on the campus, hidden in Logan’s bag, the ball of purple strings glowed a flaming red, before the light went out, leaving the ball alone in the dark._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i know it’s short please leave me be i wrote and edited this in 2 hours.
> 
> Dedications: sleepless-in-starbucks, triple kiss anon, rainbow anon, galaxy anon, Da_Useless_Queer, extravagant bi, artsy mom friend, DavidTheTraveler, ughdotcom and lia’s small army of anons


	29. Chapter 26

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> DISCLAIMER: this story is currently in late october 2019.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: hospital, crying

Patton didn’t hear Logan at first.

He had been dancing around his room, meticulously preparing for Virgil’s return in one week.

Humming along to his earbuds, he fluffed the pillows, smoothing down the creases in the blanket and-

“Patton!”

Patton popped his earbuds out. “Oh, hey, Logan.”

Logan’s face was tense, and he didn’t return Patton’s smile.

“Virgil’s missing.”

Patton didn’t think he heard him right. “He’s what?”

“Missing.” Logan bit his lip worriedly. “The hospital called. They wanted to see if he had come here. I offered for us to come over and look.”

“Okay. Well, lemme get my stuff.” Patton shoved his phone and keys into his bag. At the last second, he grabbed the ball of string.

Just in case.

The car ride there was tense. Roman sent a text to Virgil, but no response.

They parked and hurried in, waiting for the elevator to take them to Virgil’s floor.

The receptionist nearly collapsed with relief when she saw them. “Thank goodness you’re here! The security guards have no footage of Virgil leaving the building, they’re checking the rest of the tapes now. Linda says that he’s not in the cafeteria either.”

“Alright. Patton, can you go check around this floor? Roman, maybe Virgil went to hang out with the kids downstairs, would you please look there? I’ll wait in Virgil’s room in case he comes back. And don’t get distracted by the children!” he whisper-shouted after Roman’s retreating back.

Patton trotted down the hall, nervously checking the open doors. Was there a recreation room Virgil was hanging out in?

He paused for a moment, taking a deep breath to steady himself.

A line from Miss Samantha flashed into his head. “Whenever he had a bad day at school, I’d always see him sitting on the roof.”

_The roof_.

Patton turned and all but sprinted back to the receptionist’s desk.

“Is there a way to the roof?”

She looked shocked. “Well, yes, but I can assure you, the alarm would’ve sounded-“

“Doesn’t matter. Can you tell me how to get up there? Please?”

She gave him directions and he hurried away, calling, “Thanks!”

Thundering up the stairs, he came to a door that read clearly, If Opened, Alarm Will Sound.

Patton almost pressed the bar to open the door, but he looked down, spotting a familiar green folder propping the door open.

Patton pushed open the metal door, squinting in the afternoon sunlight.

Then he spotted a small figure standing at the edge of the roof.

Sending a quick, reassuring text to **lo me a kiss** and **the prity-est boy**, he clicked his phone off and yelled “Virgil!”

Virgil turned and hopped off the edge, walking stiffly over to Patton.

“What are you doing up here, Virge? Did you hurt yourself walking up? Are you ok?”

Virgil pushed Patton away, smiling. “I’m fine, sheesh, Pat.”

“How did you even get up here?”

Virgil grinned, but it strangely didn’t reach his eyes. “My favorite nurse, Camden! They said that I could come up here as long as I didn’t do anything stupid or mess with the machinery. How come you’re up here?”

“Everyone’s looking for you! Nobody knows where you are!”

“Oh.”

Virgil walked back over to the edge and sat down, letting his feet dangle over the street below. Patton followed cautiously, slinging his bag off his shoulders and sitting sideways, keeping his feet on the ground.

Patton watched Virgil for a few minutes, admiring the wind blowing through his hair.

Then a tear dripped down Virgil’s face.

Patton started, asking, “What’s wrong?”

“Why are you still coming?”

“What do you mean? Why wouldn’t we come?”

“I’m defective. This is your perfect chance to go! We aren’t soulmates anymore, there’s no point in you three coming here.”

“What? Of course we’re soulmates! Why wouldn’t we be!”

“I cut my strings off. I left. We might not be meant for each other anymore.”

“Virgil. Look at me.”

Virgil looked up at him with fearful eyes.

“I could not care _less_ about the stupid string and what it says. You are our soulmate.”

His next words burst from his mouth unbidden. “Can I kiss you?”

Virgil was silent, long enough for Patton’s mind to backpedal.

_Was that the wrong thing to say? What if I made it awkward?_

Then Virgil lunged forward, pressing his lips to Patton’s.

Startled, Patton was rigid for a second, then he melted into the kiss, wrapping his arms around Virgil’s waist and hugging him close. Virgil’s hand cradled the side of Patton’s face, knocking his glasses askew.

They broke apart too soon, and Patton buried his face in Virgil’s shoulder, smiling.

“Patton!”

Patton jolted back. “Sorry, I should’ve-“

The ball of string, half hidden in Patton’s bag, was glowing a pale blue. As the shocked pair watched, it flickered to a deep blue, then a red, then back to light blue, before glowing purple.

And it began to _move_, spinning and unwinding, the three ends flying to their places on Virgil’s hand.

His strings were reattached.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i’ve never been kissed
> 
> Dedications: sleepless-in-starbucks, triple kiss anon, rainbow anon, galaxy anon, Da_Useless_Queer, extravagant bi, artsy mom friend, DavidTheTraveler, ughdotcom and lia’s small army of anons


	30. Chapter 27

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> disclaimer: it’s late october 2019

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: hospital

Patton pushed the stairwell door open, hand-in-hand with Virgil. 

They could hear Logan’s voice echoing down the hall.

“What was the one thing I asked you not to do?”

“Get distracted by the kids,” came Roman’s voice meekly.

“And what did you do?”

“Got distracted by the kids.”

Patton and Virgil entered the open door, and Patton clapped a hand over his mouth.

Roman was _covered_ in glitter. It looked like he had rolled in the night sky and all of the stars had clung to him when he got up.

When he saw Virgil, Roman opened his arms wide for a hug.

Logan blocked him. “Uh-uh. You are not hugging Virgil until all the glitter is off.”

“Yeah,” Virgil chimed in. “What if you get glitter in my stitches? I’d have to stay longer.”

Seeing Roman’s crestfallen look, he reached up and poked Roman in the nose. “It’s okay, Princey. We can hug once all the glitter’s gone.”

Roman looked relieved, then baffled. “Wait, why’d you call me ‘Princey’?

“Because you act just like a Disney prince.”

“Aww, thanks!”

Logan interrupted. “Virgil, your strings!”

Virgil looked confused, then held up his right hand. “Right! They’re back!”

Logan pulled Virgil to the bed, sitting sideways and inspecting the healed strings.

Roman wrapped an arm around Patton, watching their soulmates excitedly discuss.

Patton pushed him away. “Stop it, you’re getting glitter on me!”

Instantly, Roman flicked glitter onto Patton’s face.

“Ha, you look like you’ve got glitter freckles!”

“That’s funny, it looks like you’ve got glitter everything!”

They began tossing the sparkles at each other, prompting Logan to bark, “If you two don’t stop throwing glitter, I am not helping either of you with your homework!”

They stopped.

With a heavy heart, they bid Virgil goodbye.

He would come back in two days.

Patton woke up the morning before Virgil came back, with a thought in his head.

_I haven’t talked to Joan in a while_.

Sending a quick _wanna chat? _to Joan, he got dressed and tried to comb his hair. As he was brushing his teeth, a _sure_ came back, and Patton settled himself on the couch with his earbuds in.

“Hi, Patton!” they said. “It’s been a while, huh?”

Patton nodded. “What’s happened for you in these last few months?”

“Nothing, I guess.” Joan said, fiddling with the string on their finger. “Taking a gap year, because I can’t find this person! They keep getting their string wrapped around stuff!”

Patton nodded. Then a thought struck him. “Y’know, Joan, once you find your soulmate, you guys can come to SUUS. It’s a college for soulmates with strange strings. If your string can get wrapped around objects, maybe it’s…I think Fern said it was called object-tangible. Anyway, it’s strange, and you could join us here!”

Joan grinned at him. “Thanks, Patton. I’ll look into it.” They cleared their throat. “Anyway, how has your life been recently?”

Patton began counting off on his fingers. “I got accepted to SUUS, Virgil cut his strings off, left, got stabbed, we threatened to take Logan’s mother to the police…hmmm, other than that, we’ve just been visiting Virgil in the hospital - well,” Patton hesitated, blushing. He wasn’t ready to talk about Virgil kissing him yet. “Yeah, that’s about it.”

Joan facepalmed. “Patton. Your soulmate got stabbed and you didn’t tell me?”

“I had a lot on my mind!”

They stayed chatting on the couch for a few more minutes, before Logan shuffled out in his Willow Falls Observatory t-shirt and pajama bottoms.

Joan saw him over Patton’s shoulder. “Patton, take your earbuds out and turn the volume up.”

“Why?”

“I want to say hi to your boyfriend.”

Patton did as they said.

“Hi Logan!”

Logan turned and saw Patton sitting on the couch, holding a grinning Joan.

“Hello, Joan.”

He sat down next to Patton on the couch, a slight blush on his face and bags under his eyes.

“Logan, can you help me convince Joan to come here next year?”

“Patton, I already said I’d look into it!”

Patton was already happily chattering away, Logan’s arm wrapped around his waist.

“And you’ll love the teachers here! They-“

Patton’s voice faltered. Not because he didn’t have anything to say about the teachers, but because, in the tiny camera window in the corner of the screen, he could see Logan’s lips pressed against the side of his head in a quick, chaste kiss.

Patton stammered to a wide-eyed and grinning Joan. “I-I gotta go. I’ll call you back later.” He hung up, flushed bright red.

Logan looked ashamed. “I’m sorry Patton, I should’ve asked. I must be sleep-deprived or-”

“No, no, it’s fine! I, uh, bye!”

Patton booked it to the bathroom, covering his face with his hands and internally screaming.

He took a deep breath, peeking out to see Logan and Roman sitting side-by-side, talking happily. Their presents for Virgil sat on the table, and Patton shyly smiled.

_Home is where the heart is. _

_And they certainly have mine_. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> glitter is a plague
> 
> Dedications: sleepless-in-starbucks, triple kiss anon, rainbow anon, galaxy anon, Da_Useless_Queer, extravagant bi, artsy mom friend, DavidTheTraveler, ughdotcom and lia’s small army of anons


	31. Chapter 28

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> disclaimer: takes place in october 2019

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: hospital

The nurses and doctors waved goodbye as Virgil exited, gripping onto Roman’s (thankfully glitter-free) arm.

Logan opened doors for them, and Patton bounded along, holding Virgil’s folders and loose-leaf papers he had been drawing on.

“Here we go,” Roman said, helping Virgil into the backseat and sliding in after him. Turning the key, Logan started the car and they pulled into the evening traffic.

Virgil’s hand drifted across the seat and found Roman’s, lightly clasping it with a faint blush.

When they returned to SUUS, Virgil got out, squinting in the sunset. Everything was bathed in a golden glow, and he took in the sights.

Turning around and around, he looked at the campus. It all seemed to be welcoming him home.

The polar opposite of the night he left.

Patton caught his elbow as he stumbled, tripping over his own feet in his excitement to see everything again.

“Careful, Virge!” he chirped. “Wouldn’t want you to go back to the doctor!”

Logan locked the car and passed the keys to Patton, leading them all into the dorm building.

Virgil suddenly felt self-conscious as he walked through the halls. Was it just him, or were people staring at him?

_You just spent a month in the hospital. Of course people will stare._

But he still kept his head lowered as they made their way to the dorm.

Patton fiddled with the key, clicking open the lock and opening the door.

“Ta-da! Welcome back, Virgil!”

Not much had changed, yet the place somehow felt…alive.

Three purple-wrapped gifts sat on the table, and Logan picked one up and passed it to him.

Virgil sat down on a chair in shock. “You got me gifts? You didn’t have to-“

“Oh yes we did!” Patton practically squealed. “Open them, open them!”

Virgil’s fingers fumbled with the tissue paper, throwing it onto the table.

He touched cloth and pulled out a brand new backpack black with white trim.

Logan smiled. “We figured, since all your stuff got stolen, you would need new things. Open the rest!”

Virgil tore the wrapping paper from the next gift to reveal a sketchbook. “I asked Miss Emily what to get,” Patton said sheepishly. “That was the one she said.”

Virgil hugged it to his chest. “I love it Patton, thank you.”

Roman’s was last. Virgil opened the box – then stopped.

He looked up at Roman in awe and astonishment. “Roman. These are really expensive colored pencils. How…?”

Roman beamed. “Well, I got a job! Haven’t actually started it yet, but –“

Logan chimed in. “He’s a daycare worker, so now when he comes home covered in glitter, at least he’s getting paid for it.”

He kept talking, but Virgil caught the word ‘home’ and savored it.

_Home._

_Yeah, this is home._

“Virgil?”

Everyone was looking at him, and Virgil flushed red.

“Sorry, I zoned out. These are great, guys. Thank you.”

Patton checked the time on his phone. “It’s dinnertime. You wanna go down and eat?”

Virgil stretched. “If it’s alright with you, can we stay here? I want to just spend time with you.”

Patton nodded. “I’ll call in for pizza later, then.”

They all nodded, and Roman’s eyes lit up with an idea. “I have Netflix on my laptop. Do you want to watch something?”

“Okay.”

“Sure.”

“Alright.”

“Go grab something comfy to put on, then, and I’ll grab my laptop.”

Virgil headed for his and Patton’s room, before stopping in his tracks.

“What’s up, Virgil?”

“I don’t have anything to put on,” Virgil muttered. “That thief took all my stuff.”

Patton grinned. “Not all of them.”

He motioned for Virgil to follow him.

Rummaging through a drawer, Patton pulled out a dark shape and tossed it to him,

Squinting in the dim light, Virgil could barely make out what it was.

“My bat onesie?”

Patton nodded, pulling out his own cat onesie.

When they exited the room, Patton burst into giggles. “Looks like we all had the same idea!”

Roman was setting up his laptop, wearing his dragon onesie, and Logan was sitting on the couch in his unicorn onesie.

“It is the most comfortable thing I own.” the latter said.

“It’s pretty much the only thing I own,” Virgil said, half-jokingly.

Off-handedly, Roman said, “No, I stole that box of Disney sweatshirts and stuff before you left, so those are still here. “

“You did what?”

Roman shushed him, smirking.

About three episodes in, Virgil felt a pressure on top of his head. Without moving his head, he looked up as far as he could. Roman’s face was pressed against the crown of his head.

Logan leaned against his shoulder, snoring lightly, and Patton’s head rested in Roman’s lap.

Virgil closed his eyes, letting their warmth wash over him.

Sure, maybe their journey wasn’t over. Maybe it never would be. But with them, a journey wasn’t just a journey.

It was an adventure.

_And we’ll be together every step of the way_.

**The End**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it’s done. i’m in shock. this story has been my heart and soul since september. thank you so much for reading. if you’ve been with me since the beginning, or if you just started, thank you so so much.   
a very big thank you to my irl friends, who have had to listen to me yell about this story for over 6 months. again, thank you. 
> 
> Dedications: sleepless-in-starbucks, triple kiss anon, rainbow anon, galaxy anon, Da_Useless_Queer, extravagant bi, artsy mom friend, DavidTheTraveler, ughdotcom and lia’s small army of anons

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! this is my first fic here and first fic ever for TS sides. i don’t know what i’m doing.
> 
> Some lore just in case i never get around to it:  
•when you trust someone, you can see each other’s strings.  
•When you trust your soulmate, your string fades and you have a tattoo of their color where it was.  
•when your soulmate dies, the tattoo turns black.  
•most shirts, jackets, hoodies, and dresses for teens have zippers up the right side, this is so your string isn’t tucked inside your clothes. when you get older, less and less clothes have that, as social stereotypes say you should have met them by now.


End file.
